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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



i|ap. iupgrigM Ifu*..— - 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 



THE LIFE 



OF 



Saiht Pros. THE Fifth, ! 

AXD OTHER SAINTS AND BLESSED 

OF THE V^^V^^, 

(f)Htv tit ixm ^gxmUtx^. -^^-v^^v^^ 

BY 

A FATHER OF THE SAME ORDER, "^ ; 

authoe of 

" The Life of St. Thomas Aquinas" and '' Lives of some 
OF THE Sons of St. Domini 




I How sweetly rest 

. I Those spirits blest, 

The saints of our dear Father's ra? 
Whose lives shone forth, 
O'er all the earth, 
In signs, and powers, and words of grace. 
— Antiphon from the Dominican Ojffice of the Blessed Virgin, 



NEW YORK ! 
D. & J. vS A D L I E R & Company, 

31 Barclay Street. 
Montreal : 1669 Notre Dame St. 

1887. 



APPROBATIONS, 



Nos infrascripti Revisores Ord. Praed. pro scriptis excudendis 
fidem facimus quod perlectum opusculum cujus titulum, " The 
Life of Saint Pius the Pifth, and other Saints and Blessed of 
the Order of Friar Preachers, by a Father of the same Order," 
compilatum, typis mandariposse censemus. 

In quorum fidem his propria manu subscripsimus, Benetise, 
die 27 Novembris, 1885. 

Fr. Bexedictus McG-oyern, 0. P. 
Fr. LuDOYicus Daniels, 0. P. 



Iraprimatur^ 

Fr. Sadoc Yilarrasa, 

Com. Gen. Cahf. 0. P. 




gmpnmatuv : 

Michael Augustixe, 

Alp, of Nevj York, 
Nov. 12th, 1886. 



Imprimatur^ i 

Fr. D. J. Me>4hee, 0. P. 

ProY. P. St. Joseph, U. S. 



PREFACE. 



Seeing that this little book lays no claim 
to deep research, the author having simply 
narrated what he found, it would be out of 
place to tell the sources from whence the 
lives of the saints in this volume have been 
drawn. The work of the BoUandists, and 
several collections of Lives of Dominican 
saints have been mainly useful in writing this 
book. Yet it would be unfair not to ac- 
knowledge the author's debt to the Comte 
de Falloux, whose Life of Saint Pius the 
Fifth has been almost solely made use of in 
writing the sketch of the life of that saint. 

This volume, as also the "Life of Saint 
Thomas Aquinas," and "Lives of some of the 
Sons of Saint Dominic," form part of what is 
intended to be a complete collection of Lives 
of all the Saints and Blessed of the First 
Order of Saint Dominic ; written chiefly for 
the English speaking members of the three 
Orders, and also for all those who love to 
read the Lives of the Saints of God. 



INDEX. 



Saint Pius the Fifth, Pope. 
Saixt John of Gorcum, Martyr. 
Blessed Pinter Gonzalez, Confessor. 
Blessed Augustine op Nocera, Bishop. 
Blessed Francis de Posadas, Confessor. 
Blessed Benedict the Eleventh, Pope. 
Blessed Simon Ballachi, Lay Brother. 
Blessed Albert of Berga^io, Tertiary. 
Blessed James of Beyagna, Confessor. 
Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, Confessor. 



3 

121 

175 
203 
231 
267 

285 
297 
305 
327 



ST. PIUS THE FIFTH. 



ST. PI US THE FIFTH 

May $th. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE Order of Friar Preachers, founded by 
Saint Dominic, has drawn recruits from 
every condition in Hfe. It has attracted to itself 
young men and maidens, innocent in virginal 
purity, taught the secrets of penance to thou- 
sands of sinners, has drawn into its ranks the 
learned, who dedicated their science to the 
service of God, and the ignorant, who, desir- 
ous of rising to degrees of sanctity, otherwise 
unattainable, donned the black scapular of 
the lay brother, and spent their lives minis- 
tering to the bodily and temporal wants of the 
more learned of the brethren of the Order. 
And in return, this holy Order, instead of 



4 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

hiding the learning and holiness of its mem- 
bers in an impenetrable seclusion, has given 
to the world many remarkable examples of 
science, as well as holiness, in almost every 
sphere of life. The names of the eminent 
architects and painters of the Order of Saint 
Dominic dwell in the memory of every stu- 
dent of histor3^ Philosophers and theologians 
are as numerous in its annals as the stars in 
the heavens. Thousands of missionaries have 
spread the glad tidings of Christ in all lands 
and to all peoples. Martyrs innumerable 
have watered the soil with their heart's blood. 
Where is the land which has not seen the 
white-robed Dominican searching for souls? 
And where the country in which they have 
not died for the faith ? How many holy 
Bishops have been forced from their beloved 
monasteries by the voice of the Church, 
which has pressed the mitre on their unwill- 
ing brows, as a reward for their zeal and learn- 
ing. And the sons of Saint Dominic have 
been placed by God on the highest throne in 
the world, the Chair of Saint Peter. Four 
Popes have shed lustre on the Dominican 
Order, while they ruled the Church of God 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 5 

injustice and holiness : Peter of Tarentasia, 
under the title of Innocent 5th, called Blessed 
by the annalists of the Order, Nicolas Boc- 
casini, known as Benedict nth, declared 
Blessed by the Church, Benedict 13th, a 
member of the princely family of the Orsini, 
and Michael Ghislieri, known as Saint Pius 
the Fifth. 

The latter was undoubtedly the most re- 
markable. This great Saint shows us an ex- 
ample of virtues suited for several states of 
life. He had the austerity of an anchorite, 
the burning zeal of an apostle, prudential 
governing powers of a faithful Christian 
Bishop, the learning of a Cardinal, and that 
combination of virtues and natural qualities 
necessary to make him a great and holy Pope. 
As a Bishop, he never ceased to be a relig- 
ious. Clothed in the purple of the Roman 
Cardinalate, he did penance so severe that his 
rank might be no snare for the humility of his 
soul ; with the tiara on his brow he was as 
humble as when a novice in his monaster}^, 
and yet as bold as a lion when the honor and 
glory of God called him to defend the 
Church. 



6 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

This great Saint was born January 17th, 
1504, at Bosco, a little town near Alexandria, 
in Piedmont, a province in the north of Italy. 
His father, Paul Ghislieri, belonged to a fam- 
ily which had once been one of the noble 
families of the city of Bologna. But in the 
civil wars of the fifteenth century the Ghis- 
lieri lost their wealth, and were banished by 
a popular sedition. Some fled to Rome, 
where they adopted the name of Consigliari, 
but others settled in Bosco, preserving their 
ancient name. At the end of the 15th cen- 
tury Paul Ghislieri, of Bosco, married Do- 
menica Augeria, and to them, January 17th, 
1504, was born a son, whom they named 
Michael, or according to some authors, An- 
toninus ; the name of Michael having been 
given him when he entered the Dominican 
Order. Paul and his wife were poor, but 
very virtuous, and gave their son a Christian 
education. 

They implanted principles of virtue and re- 
ligion in his youthful mind, and by the regu- 
larity and holiness of their own lives showed 
him how to live as a true Christian. Their 
care and piety were richly rewarded. Mich- 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 7 

ael grew up a pious and modest youth, and 
very devout, especially to the holy Mother of 
God. And while he increased in piety he 
began to show a great aptitude for study. 

At the age of twelve he had already 
learned to desire a happiness higher than 
that which the enjoyments of life afford, and 
to long for the quiet contentment and undis- 
turbed peace of the contemplative life. When 
he first felt attracted to the religious state, he 
prayed that God might open to him some way 
of following his attraction. There was no 
monastery at Bosco, and he was not ac- 
quainted with any religious. But one day 
two Dominicans passed through the town. 
Michael timidly accosted them, and very soon 
entered into conversation with them ; and 
when they found that he had a vocation, they 
asked him if he would go with them, promis- 
ing him, if he was thought worthy, that he 
should enter the novitiate. Michael ran to 
his parents, full of joy, and kneeling down, 
prayed them to give their consent and bless- 
ing. They readily gave permission, happy to 
have their child in so holy a state of life. 
Michael, therefore, accompanied the two 



8 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 

Fathers to Voghera, twenty miles from Bosco, 
In that monastery he served Mass every 
morning, and devoted the rest of the day to 
study, with such good will and so evident a 
zest, that the fathers took great pleasure in 
teaching him. 

When sufficiently advanced he was sent to 
Vigevani to receive the habit and begin his 
novitiate ; and there he made his profession, 
in the year 15 19, at the age of 15. 

When the Father Provincial, who received 
his vows at profession, asked him by what 
name he would like to be known in religion, 
he answered, " Brother Michael of Bosco/' 
But the Father Provincial answered : '* No 
one knows Bosco ; in future you will be known 
as Michael the Alexandrian, because you were 
born in the neighborhood of Alexandria/' 
This was the name by which he became 
known, and when he was created Cardinal he 
was called Cardinal Alexandrine. 

After profession he studied philosophy in 
the monastery at Bologna, and later on 
theology — in both distinguishing himself — 
while at the same time he learned the divine 
science of prayer and contemplation. He 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 9 

often said that prayer is a powerful means 
of acquiring knowledge, and that the more 
the soul is united to God b}^ prayer the more 
it becomes capable of enriching itself and of 
enlightening others. 

Hardly had he finished his course of phil- 
osophy and theology when he was thought 
capable of teaching. His treatment of theol- 
ogy was what one would look for from a 
Saint, and one of his biographers (F. John 
Baptist Feuillet) says that he mingled the 
thorns of Calvary with the thorns of theol- 
ogy. He was only twenty years old at this 
time, but such was the opinion formed of 
him that crowds of students attended his 
lectures from all parts of Italy. 

He was ordained priest at Genoa, being 
then twenty-four years of age. In his sincere 
humility he thought himself unworthy to be 
a priest, and nothing but the authority of the 
Provincial could induce him to be ordained. 
Meditating on the fearful responsibilities of a 
Christian priest, and on the immaculate holi- 
ness required of those whose sacred office 
leads them daily to the altar, there to offer 
the sacrifice of the holy Mass, and whose 



lo The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

duty it is to administer God's holy sacra- 
ments, caused him to tremble lest he should 
be unworthy of an office so high, and with so 
fearful a responsibility attached to it. When 
the time of his ordination drew near he 
begged to remain a simple religious, free 
from the cares of the priesthood. 

But God, who confers the office of priest- 
hood on whom he pleases, fits them for their 
duties by sacramental graces, and the Father 
Provincial gently used his authority to com- 
mand Brother Michael to set aside his fears, 
and, in holy obedience, to take upon himself 
that office for which his virtues and natural 
talents so eminently fitted him. 




The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 1 1 



CHAPTER II. 

SOON after his ordination he was sent to 
the Provincial chapter held at Parma, 
where he defended some theological theses, 
or propositions, against the heretical opinions 
of the Lutherans, at that time beginning to 
attract attention. He renewed his diligence 
in study, so that he might be more able to 
refute these dangerous errors. Nevertheless, 
his studies did not hinder him from assisting 
regularly at the divine office in the choir; nor 
from fulfilling the other pious duties of holy 
religion. He read some portion of the Life of 
Saint Dominic every day, in order to model 
his life on that of the founder of his beloved 
Order. He practised rigorous mortifications, 
and often took upon himself some menial 
duty, in order to acquire a spirit of humility. 
The time allowed for recreation he spent in 
charitable deeds, such as consoling the sad 
and weary, encouraging the feeble, and in- 
structing the ignorant. 

The fathers of the monastery, recognizing 



1 2 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

his virtues, regularity of life, and natural ca- 
pacities, twice elected him Prior of Vigevani, 
and he filled the same office in the monas- 
teries of Soncino and Alba. As superior, he 
showed much firmness, tempered with sweet- 
ness, and it was thought a great happiness to 
live in the communities committed to his 
charge He had a very remarkable gift of 
directing souls of an untractable disposition. 
He often told his community that piety and 
knowlec|ge are the two breasts from whence 
religious should draw the milk of devotion, 
without w^hich the human heart and soul 
would cease to have an interior unction. " A 
monk/' he would often say, '' is like a fish, 
which cannot live out of its natural element.'' 
And he frequently reminded his religious 
that just as salt returns to water, its first sub- 
stance, so a religious, that evangelical salt 
which God withdraws from the w^orld, re- 
sumes its false maxims and evil vices when 
he re-enters it without sufficient cause. 

When he was Prior in Lombardy, w^ar and 
famine desolated the country. Three hun- 
dred soldiers arrived one day at the monas- 
tery to pillage it. Father Michael met them 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 13 

without fear and received them as he would 
receive friendly guests, and by his kindness 
inspired them with such veneration, that al- 
though they remained a whole month in the 
monastery, they caused no trouble, and the 
usual monastic discipline and observances 
were never once interrupted. In fact, many 
of them went to office in choir, and took their 
meals with the fathers and brothers in the 
refectory, listening in deep silence to the 
brother who, according to monastic custom, 
read some pious book from a pulpit during 
meals. 

His sermons persuaded many souls to lead 
a more holy life than is found among ordi- 
nary Christians. Among these was the Mar- 
quis of Guast, Governor of Milan, who chose 
him for his director, and made him the dis- 
tributor of his alms. This duty necessitated 
a journey of twenty miles, which he always 
made on foot, carrying his bag on his shoul- 
ders, and the Marquis could never persuade 
him to ride, nor to buy a cloak to keep off 
the rain. He was very strict with himself 
and other religious on the observance of the 
vow of poverty. He maintained that this 



14 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

vow ought to deprive religious of super- 
fluities, and even of necessaries. He always 
went on foot when he was called to preach in 
the neighboring towns and villages. He 
sanctified these journeys by meditating as he 
walked along, and the beauty which God has 
so profusely lavished on this earth, drew from 
him many a fervent act of thanksgiving for 
his goodness in making the world so fair. 
When he overtook any one on the way, he 
entered into conversation with him for a little 
while, and then he would take his rosary 
from his belt, and invite his companion to 
recite the beads with him. 




The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 1 5 



CHAPTER III. 

THE new doctrines of Luther, having over- 
run Switzerland, spread into the northern 
provinces of Italy. The Cardinals of the 
Holy Office, after a long and careful deliber- 
ation on the best means to preserve the peo- 
ple from these soul-destroying heresies, ap- 
pointed Father Michael Ghislieri Inquisitor 
and ordered him to take up his residence at 
Como. 

Probably no beneficial institution has been 
so calumniated as the Roman Inquisition. 
Until lately, when its real character has been 
dispassionately studied by the enemies of the 
Catholic Church, it was looked upon by Pro- 
testants as a bloodthirsty means, unscru- 
pulously made use of, to imprison and murder 
the enemies of the Catholic religion. Impar- 
tial inquiry and calm examination have now 
shown it to have been a prudent and lawful 
way of hindering the civil wars and intestine 
strife which have usually followed the intro- 



1 6 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

duction of Protestantism into lands hitherto 
Catholic. 

The Roman Inquisition must not be con- 
founded with the Spanish Inquisition. 

The principle on which the Roman Inquisi- 
tion was based is one common to all religions. 
It is that heresy, or dissent from the true 
faith, is a great crime, and that it should be 
punished as such. Reason teaches that the 
death of one man is preferable than that 
thousands should die the death of the soul 
in consequence of the propagation of heretical 
doctrines. Universal experience has also 
taught mankind that the wars which have 
frequently followed the introduction of here- 
sy into a Catholic country have been among 
the most terrible known in history, and that 
therefore it was expedient that some should 
die rather than many should suffer. 

It is difficult to point out the exact date 
when the Roman Inquisition was founded. 
In the early centuries of the Christian Church 
all cases of heresy were tried in secular courts, 
but in process of time this duty fell into the 
hands of Bishops, who never punished those 
who were condemned, but delivered them 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 1 7 

over to the secular power to receive their 
deserts. 

The spread of the Waldensian and Albigen- 
sian heresies, in the i ith and 12th centuries, in- 
duced the Popes to take more stringent meas- 
ures for exterminating heretical doctrines. 
The Fourth Council of Lateran, held in the 
year 121 5, may be said to have permanently es- 
tablished the courts of the Roman Inquisition. 
Gregory 9th gave the care of the Inquisition 
to the Dominican Fathers in Germany, Arra- 
gon, Lombardy, and the south of France. In 
Spain it became a great power under Cardi- 
nal Mendoza, and Ferdinand and Isabella ob- 
tained a bull from the Pope authorizing the 
establishment of the Tribunal of the Inquisi- 
tion. Thus the famous Spanish Inquisition 
was from its first commencement more of a 
royal than ecclesiastical court. The first 
court was opened in Seville in 1481, and exe- 
cutions became frequent. Many appeals were 
made to the Popes from the sentences of the 
Spanish Inquisition, and Rome frequently in- 
terfered to moderate its rigor. From the 
beginning of the 17th century, the Spanish 
Inquisition became more lenient, and since 



1 8 The Life of St Pius the Fifth. 

then it has been occupied chiefly with the ex- 
amination of books suspected of heresy. It 
was several times abolished, finally in 1834. 

The Roman Inquisition was established for 
the whole Catholic Church in 1543. It is 
universally acknowledged that it was the 
mildest institution of the kind, and has never 
inflicted the punishment of death. It was to 
this Inquisition that Father Michael was ap- 
pointed. No one, therefore, should be sur- 
prised that Saint Pius was an Inquisitor. 
As soon as he arrived at Como he at once 
began a personal inspection of all the towns 
placed under his jurisdiction, being hindered 
by no hardship or fatigue. In the exercise 
of his office we learn that, although usually 
so tender hearted, he could become stern and 
inflexible, when God*s honor and the good of 
the Church called for vigorous measures. 

A book written by one of the most insidious 
heretics, and printed in thelcastle of Poschiano 
was sent to an influential merchant, who un- 
dertook to circulate it in Modena and Vincen- 
za. Father Michael seized all the copies, but, 
the Episcopal See of Como, being vacant at 
the time, the merchant, who had friends in 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 19 

the Cathedral Chapter, obtained permission 
from the Vicar General to have them re- 
turned. Father Michael excommunicated all 
who had taken part in the matter, and went 
to Rome to place his conduct before the 
Cardinals of the Holy Office. They approved 
of what he had done, and cited the Vicar 
General and Cathedral Chapter to appear be- 
fore them in Rome. 

When Father Michael returned to Como 
the canons excited the mob against him, and 
he was stoned in the streets. He took refuge 
in the castle of Bernard Odeschalci, but 
some powerful nobleman continued to perse- 
cute him, and the Count della Trinita threat- 
ened to throw him into a well. " What God 
wishes will be done/' was his calm reply. 

The Vicar General complained of him to 
the Governor of Milan, Ferdinand de Gon- 
zaga, representing him as a dangerous man 
who was attempting to excite sedition by ex- 
aggerated zeal, and demanded that he should 
be hindered from doing any harm. Father 
Michael deemed it prudent to leave the city, 
upon which the Governor cited him to ap- 
pear and answer the charges brought against 



20 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

him. Although Saint Pius was thirty miles 
from Milan when he received the citation, he 
set out on foot to return. But being warned 
that the heretics had laid an ambush for him 
at the same place where the glorious Domini- 
can Martyr, Saint Peter of Verona, died for 
the faith, he took another road, and travelling 
on foot all night, appeared next day at the 
hour fixed. The Governor received him 
angrily, and left the audience chamber with- 
out saying a word to him. The humble 
Father patiently received the studied affront, 
and thanked God for humbling him so publicly. 
Seeing a gentleman on intimate terms with 
the Governor, he spoke to him, and begged 
him to make known to the Governor that he 
was present. This gentleman quickly re- 
turned, and brought back word that he was 
to be imprisoned ; a threat, however, not 
carried into execution. 



The Life of St, Piits the Fifth. 2 1 



CHAPTER IV. 

FATHER Michael soon afterwards returned 
to Rome. He arrived at the monastery of 
Santa Sabina on Christmas eve, fasting, and 
fatigued with his long journey. The Prior, 
who did not know him, thinking from his 
dusty and way-worn appearance that he had 
come to Rome for purposes of his own, said 
to him, in a tone of raillery : ^' Have you 
come to Rome to see if the Sacred College of 
Cardinals is disposed to make you Pope?'* 
'^ I have come to Rome," said the humble 
Father, " because the interests of the Church 
call me here. I shall go aw^ay as soon as my 
task is fulfilled. Till then all I ask is a short 
hospitality and some fodder for my mule.'' 
He presented himself the next day before 
the Cardinals of the Sacred Office. Cardinal 
John Peter CarafFa, the founder of the Thea- 
tines, afterwards Pope Paul 4th, was among 
them. He had devoted his whole life to the 
restoration of Catholic discipline and morals. 
In the person of the humble Dominican friar 



2 2 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

he at once recognized what a great man stood 
before him. Having obtained from him a 
faithful narration of all which had taken place 
in Lombardy, the Cardinals approved of his 
conduct, and sent him back to Como, to con- 
tinue his labors. The nomination of a new 
Bishop of Como, and the submission of the 
Vicar General and refractory canons, at length 
restored peace. But new difficulties arose at 
Coire, a small town in Switzerland. Two 
canons disputed the possession of a benefice. 
Both were of rich and powerfulfamilies. One, 
named Laplante, was accused of heretical doc- 
trine, and loose morality, but was warmly 
supported in his claim by influential friends. 
Father Michael, having heard of this scanda- 
lous dispute, determined to put an end to it, 
and set off for the town. The Catholics 
warned him that the country through which 
he would pass was overrun with heresy, and 
advised him to take off his Dominican habit 
so that he might not be recognized. " No,'* 
he answered ; *' when I accepted this office I 
accepted danger and death at the same time. 
I could not lose my life in a more glorious 
cause than by giving it for the faith." Brave 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 23 

words ! revealing the spirit of the martyr ; 
words justified by all the actions of his life. 
So he set out for Coire publicly in mid-day, 
and arrived there safely. He condemned 
Laplante, and quickly put an end to the 
scandal. 

He next went to Bergamo, where a well- 
known lawyer, George Medulaco, was steadi- 
ly propagating Protestant doctrines. He had 
already been reprimanded. Father Michael 
Ghislieri, therefore, reproved him, but treated 
him with kindness and allowed a near kins- 
man of his, Jerome Albano, to visit him in 
prison, with the hope of leading him back to 
the* Catholic faith. Yet the heretic met all 
his arguments with abuse and refused to 
listen. 

Medulaco was connected by birth with the 
leading families of Bergamo, who rose up in 
arms, and liberated him from prison. Father 
Michael, is no wise daunted, publicly excom- 
municated them in the principal square of the 
city, and had the satisfaction of finding that 
the citizens had still some respect for the laws 
of the Church, for they took the rescued 
heretic back to prison; and implored pardon 



24 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 

for their crime. Medulaco was sent to Ven- 
ice, and ended his days in deserved obscurity. 

The Bishop of Bergamo, Victor Soranzo, 
of a noble Venitian family, was also infected 
with heresy, and incited the senate to seek a 
quarrel with the intrepid Inquisitor. The 
Bishop was arrested, taken to Rome, deposed 
from his See, and imprisoned in the castle of 
San Angelo. 

The important and very trustworthy office 
of Commissary General of the Inquisition 
having become vacant, in the year 1551, by 
the death of the Dominican Father Theophilus 
de Tropeus, Father Michael was recom- 
mended for the vacant office by Cardinal 
Caraffa, and at once installed. A very inti- 
mate friendship sprung up between these holy 
men. Cardinal Caraffa gave him apartments 
in his own palace, and ordered his attendants 
to admit him to his presence, no matter at 
what hour he presented himself. In this new 
office he worked with indefatigable zeal. 
Ev6ry morning he visited the heretics in pris- 
on, and by persuasion and Christian charity 
endeavored to show them the grievousness of 
their errors. His zeal was crowned with 



The Life of St, Phcs the Fifth. 25 

success. When any of these misguided men 
retracted his errors, no kindness was too great 
for him to show him. He devoted the great- 
er part of the revenues he received from this 
office to the relief of the poor. 

One of the souls he thus rescued from 
eternal damnation was the famous Sixtus of 
Siena. 

He was born at Siena, in the year 1520, of 
Jewish parents. He entered the Catholic 
Church, and according to some authors, be- 
came a Franciscan. His knowledge of Greek 
and Hebrew made him famous, and he taught 
as well as preached, with great success, in the 
principal cities of Italy, for ten years. Un- 
happily he fell into error, for which he was 
confined in the prisons of the Sacred Office, 

But Father Michael could not allow a man 
so talented and endowed with such a power 
for good to perish. He earnestly begged 
God to enlighten him, and to show him the 
best way to proceed. Fortified with prayer, 
he sought an interview, and soon led him back 
to the ways of truth. Sixtus repented, and 
in the sincerity of his repentance begged to 
be allowed to do penance for his sins. Father 



26 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. " 

Michael went at once to the Pope, and did 
not leave his presence until he had obtained 
his pardon. Several months afterwards, to 
his great delight, Sixtus entered the Order of 
St. Dominic, in which he did severe penance 
for his sins, and led a very edifying life. His 
name is well known to Biblical students. 

About the same time Father Michael be- 
came the friend of another great and famous 
man : a Franciscan Friar, who became known 
to the world as Pope Sixtus the Fifth. The 
way in which these two .souls met is very 
characteristic of the times, and shows us, as 
nothing but such an incident can, the spirit of 
inquiry and doubt prevalent at that period. 
The Catholic faith was attacked everywhere ; 
even under the shadow of the dome of Saint 
Peter's, in the very heart of Christianity. 

A young Franciscan, Father Felix Peretti, 
was preaching a course of sermons in the 
Church of the Holy Apostles in Rome, in the 
year 1551. His eloquence drew crowds, and 
he became so well known that those in per- 
plexity often gave him letters on his way to 
the pulpit, containing an account of their 
religious doubts, or the spiritual wants of 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 27 

their soul. He was accustomed to read these 
letters when he paused for a short time at the 
end of the different divisions of his sermon. 
One day he received one on the subject of 
predestination, ending with these words : 
*' Thou liest," written in large letters. 

This unexpected attack disconcerted him, 
and he was obliged to shorten his sermon, not 
to let his embarrassment be noticed. On his 
return to the monastery he retired into his 
cell, but hardly had he entered when he saw 
a Dominican father follow him. This father 
entered into conversation with him, and in- 
terrogated him on his theological opinions, 
pressing him with subtle arguments, and 
sounding the depths of his soul, with all the 
skill and subtlety of a practised theologian. 
His answers showed him to be firmly attached 
to all the doctrines of the Catholic faith. 
Father Michael, for it was he, at length em- 
braced him with joy, saying : *' If you are 
ever in need of a defender, none but myself 
shall undertake that duty.'* 



28 The Life of St: Pius the Fifth, 



CHAPTER V. 

POPE Julius the Third died March 23d, 
1555. Before entering into solemn con- 
clave, to elect his successor, the Cardinals in- 
vested Father Michael Ghislieri with the full 
exercise of all their powers ; an act unprece- 
dented in the history of the Catholic Church, 
and one which reveals the influence he had 
already obtained in the Pontifical Court by 
his sterling merits and force of natural char- 
acter. 

Marcellus the Second was elected on the 
fourth day of the Conclave, but died twent}^- 
two days afterwards. He was succeeded by 
Cardinal Caraflfa, who had ever shown him- 
self the staunch friend of Father Michael. He 
was eighty years of age, and took the name of 
Paul the Fourth. 

Not content with retaining Father Michael 
as Commissary General of the Inquisition, he 
nominated him Bishop of Nepi and Sutri, two 
cities near Rome. Father Michael was over- 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 29 

come with grief when he heard of the dignity 
conferred upon him, and went to beseech the 
Pope to annul the nomination. He begged 
him to take away the heavy responsibility 
thus imposed upon him, and to allow him to 
live and die a simple Friar. The Pope would 
not listen, and told him to look upon it as the 
will of God. Upon which Father Michael only 
asked permission to be allowed to go to his 
diocese at once; but it was not until January 
of 1557 that he was released from his Office 
as Commissary General of the Inquisition, 
and allowed to take possession of his diocese 
in person. 

His presence soon became felt. He visited 
every parish, large and small. A Bishop's 
presence had never been known in many par- 
ishes he visited, and his visitation was a 
cause of much practical good. 

Still he. turned with sincere regret to the 
quiet of his dearly loved monastery, and im- 
plored the Pope to allow him to resign his 
see, to return to the society of his fellow Do- 
minicans. Paul the 4th, desirous of destroy- 
ing all such hopes, answered : '•^ I will attach 
a chain to your feet so strong, that even after 



30 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

my death you will not be able to dream of 
the cloister," and a short time afterwards he 
sent for him, to tell him that he was about to 
make him Cardinal in the next consistory. 
Some difficulties, however, arose, and he was 
not raised to that princely dignity until 
March 15th, 1557. As he felt no joy what- 
ever on being elevated to the Cardinalate, he 
could not express any gratitude to the Pope, 
but this was done for him by all the other 
Cardinals, who, by a spontaneous movement, 
thanked the Pope for giving them a colleague 
so worthy. 

He chose the title of Santa Maria sopra 
Minerva, which was admitted into the num- 
ber of titular churches for the first time in his 
favor. This beautiful Gothic Church was 
originally under the care of the Greek monks 
of the Order of Saint Basil, but was given to 
the Order of Saint Dominic by Gregory the 
Eleventh, for the sepulture of Saint Catherine 
of Sienna. 

Instead of being known as Cardinal 
Ghislieri, he was called Cardinal Alexandrine. 
This was his own wish, to remind him always 
that he was a Dominican, for it will be re- 



1 he Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 31 

membered that the name of Brother Michael 
of Alexandria was given him on taking the 
vows in the Dominican Order. 

Soon afterwards he was appointed Inquisi- 
tor General, in which office he had to decide 
causes and appeals from all parts of the world, 
and was invested with authority over all In- 
quisitors, Delegates, and even Bishops who 
exercised this authority, and his decision was 
to be final. This was a power given to none 
before, and to none since, the Popes always 
reserving appeals to themselves. 

These striking marks of esteem caused him 
to feel no pride and he was so little elated, 
that when the Pope spoke to him about creat- 
ing him Cardinal, he said : '' What, holy 
Father, would you take me out of purgatory 
to throw me into hell.'* His sincere and 
heartfelt modesty made him look upon that 
dignity as far above his merits, and he was 
fearful lest he should not be able to fulfil its 
obligations. He did not abandon the Do- 
minican habit for the Cardinal's robes, and 
continued to observe faithfully all the fasts 
and abstinence prescribed by the Dominican 
rule, in no wise diminished any of the aus- 



32 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

terities it commands, and lived a life as sim- 
ple and unostentatious as the humblest monk 
in the cloister. His household was formed of 
just so many servants as were necessary. 
He insisted that they should be of blameless 
lives; and when he received any one into his 
service, always warned him that it was not a 
palace but a monastery he entered, and that 
he would have to live as austere a life as any 
monk in the cloister. He watched over his 
servants, and especially took care that they 
should often receive the sacraments, appoint- 
ing certain days when he himself adminis- 
tered holy Communion to them. He even 
busied himself about the quality of their food, 
took care that they were allowed ample time 
for rest, and ordered that no one should be 
overworked. He was careful to give them 
no extra trouble, and never called upon them 
during the time allowed for meals or repose. 
The most beautiful apartment in his pal- 
ace became an infirmary for them, and when 
any were sick he visited them in person. 

Paul the Fourth died, August i8, 1559, and 
was succeeded by Pius the Fourth, who also 
gave him every mark of esteem and confi- 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. ^iZ 

dence. He confirmed him in the office of 
Grand Inquisitor, and transferred him from 
the see of Nepi and Sutri to the more im- 
portant one of Mondovi in Piedmont. 

He determined to go to his new diocese, 
which was in a deplorable state, but by the 
advice of his physician paid a visit to the 
baths of Lucca on his way. The Senate of 
the City of Genoa dispatched four galleys to 
meet him. Emmanuel Philbert, Duke of 
Savoy, received him with unusual honors, 
and entertained him for three days. Ar- 
rived at Monciovi, he gave his whole care to 
the reformation of the diocese. He preached 
in every church, administered the sacra- 
ment of Confirmation, and spared no efforts 
to root out the abuses which had arisen, part- 
ly from the negligence of the preceding 
Bishops, and partly from the increase of here- 
tics in the diocese of the neighborhood. 



34 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 



CHAPTER VI. 

AS soon as Saint Pius returned to Ronie, 
the Pope placed him on a congregation, 
established to terminate the difficulties which 
had arisen in consequence of the reforms in 
ecclesiastical discipline made by the Council 
of Trent. In this Office he always showed 
himself the strenuous upholder of all its salu- 
tary decrees. Thus, when the Grand Duke of 
Tuscany and Modena had asked the Cardi- 
naUs hat for two young princes of his house, 
Ferdinand de Medici, thirty years, and Fred- 
erick de Gonzaga, only twenty-one years of 
age, and the Pope not liking to refuse this 
favor, Cardinal Ghislieri boldly opposed it in 
these terms : ^* Your holiness wnll allow me 
to represent to you that the Council of Trent, 
having carefully toiled to reform morals and 
to restore ecclesiastical discipline, unhappily 
relaxed by the evils of the times, all the 
Bishops would be scandalized to see one of its 
decrees thus broken. The Church does not 



The Life of SL Pius the Fifth, 35 

need children, but full-grown men; men cap- 
able of upholding her fair fame and holiness/* 
And he resisted the proposal so warmly that 
the Pope deferred their election. But high- 
born relations insisted, and the Pope gave 
way. When, according to custom, the new 
Cardinals sent representatives to thank each 
member of the Sacred College, Cardinal 
Alexandrine could not conceal his sorrow, 
and said: ** You have no cause for gratitude to 
me, for I opposed with all my might this pro- 
motion.'* And when it was represented to 
him that this great freedom of thought anti 
speech might draw him into disgrace, he 
answered that so soon as he was not allowed 
to speak the truth in Rome he would gladly 
retire to his diocese. 

Soon afterwards he was forced by his con- 
science to disagree with the Pope. Charles 
the Ninth of France proposed to Pius the 4th 
that the legation of Avignon should be taken 
away from Cardinal Farnese, and given to 
Charles de Bourbon. The Pope was inclined 
to assent, but Cardinal Alexandrine, knowing 
that Cardinal de Bourbon was allied by blood 
to the Huguenot faction, thought it would not 



36 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

be for the good of the Church, and therefore 
vigorously opposed the measure. The Pope 
acknowledged the truth and force of his ob- 
jections, but became angr}^, and finding him 
inflexible in his opposition, showed his dis- 
pleasure by restricting his privileges as In- 
quisitor. He was in no way moved by these 
marks of evident disgrace, and finding that his 
diocese required him, at once sent off his 
effects by sea and was himself preparing to 
embark, when he learned that Corsairs had 
captured the ship. 

He was attacked by the gravel soon after, 
and hoped that his death would give him a 
speedy entrance into heaven. He recovered, 
however, and the Cardinals, hearing that he 
was starting for Mondovi, did all they could 
to keep him in Rome. The Pope also, know- 
ing how great would be his loss, forbade him 
to leave the eternal city. 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, i^y 



CHAPTER VII. 

POPE Pius the 4th died December 9th, 1565. 
When the conclave of Cardinals met, it 
was expected that Saint Charles Borromeo 
would be elected Pope. Although only 
27 years of age, he had shown great abilities 
in the management of his diocese, and his up- 
rightness as Cardinal had surrounded him 
with glory, so that he was universally es- 
teemed as a saint, but during the conclave the 
unanimous vote centred in St. Pius. 

When the Cardinals went to announce his 
election to him, he was profoundly astonished, 
and his humility deeply wounded. He de- 
clined the honor ; but after many tearful pro- 
testations, was at length induced to consent. 
Being vested in the pontifical robes, he was 
placed on the throne and the ceremony of 
adoration, or homage of the Cardinals, took 
place ; after which his election was publicly 
announced. 

He became Pope, January 9th, 1566. He 
was sixt3^-two years of age. 



38 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

When the Roman people heard of his elec- 
tion they were in great fear. The inflexibil- 
ity of his conduct when duty required firm- 
ness was well known, but the finer and more 
attractive qualities of sweetness and gentle- 
ness were not so universally recognized, and 
the Romans were afraid the new Pope would 
rule them with a rod of iron. The expression 
of their fear came to his ears. '' Let us act in 
such a wa}^** he said, ** that they will be more 
afflicted at my death, than at my election ; '' 
and so it came to pass. 

Accordingly he began his reign by an act 
of kindness. He caused a list of all the poor 
in the city to be given to him, so that he 
could give each a weekly alms; and instead of 
scattering money among the crowd at his 
election, or of having the festivals usual at 
the coronation of a Pope, he gave the money 
either to the hospitals of the city, or to those 
poor who were ashamed to own their pover- 
ty. He appointed officials to take care of 
orphans and young girls till of age to marry, 
when he dowered them liberally. It was the 
custom to distribute a thousand crowns to 
fete the Ambassadors who assisted at the cor- 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 39 

onation. This money he sent to the poorest 
and most needy monasteries in Rome, and 
when several persons found fault with hira 
for doing so, he said: ** God will not punish 
me for depriving the ambassadors of princes 
of a feast, but he will demand from me an ac- 
count of the needy, who are his own mem- 
bers/' On the day of his coronation he 
recognized among the crowd a poor laborer 
of Bergamo, who had formerly received him 
charitably v/hen he had lost his way, and had 
concealed him in his house when he was in 
danger from heretics. He ordered five hun- 
dred ducats to be given to him as a reward 
for his charity. 

The times in which Saint Pius was called 
to guide the bark of^ Peter were very evil, 
and the Catholic world was menaced with 
many dangers. Protestantism and unbridled 
moral license had ruined some of the finest 
Catholic countries, and although heresy had 
received agreat check by the wise and pru- 
dent labors of the Council of Trent, yet none 
could view the ravages it had made without 
profound sorrow. Nevertheless, many were 
the streams of light amid the darkness of the 
almost universal corruption. 



40 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 

Saints, not a few were living at that time. 
The same Order which had given the new 
Pope to the Church also gave her Saint 
Catherine of Ricci and Saint Rose of Lima. 
The founder of the Oratorians, Saint Philip 
Neri, was leading many souls to God. The 
Jesuits had Saint Francis Borgia and Saint 
Stanislaus Kostka, while Saint Felix de Can- 
talice, Saint John of God, Saint Teresa, Saint 
Charles Borromeo, and Saint Peter of Alcan- 
tara gave a lustre to the Church by their vir- 
tues and proved its divinity and the truth of 
its doctrines by their miracles. 

Saint Pius soon showed himself to be a re- 
former in the true sense of the word. As soon 
as he was elected, he began to devote his 
whole energies to the service of the Church, 
especially to carrying out the decrees of the 
Council of Trent. He commenced by re- 
forming the pontifical household, and the 
capital of the Christian world. He fasted 
and prayed much, to beg the blessing of God 
on his efforts, and frequently recommended 
himself to the prayers of religious communi- 
ties. He published a Jubilee to draw down 
upon the Church the blessing of God. 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 41 

He called a meeting of all the dignitaries 
and domestics of his palace, and gave them a 
rule of life ; he told them plainly that he 
would never allow anything against morality 
to take place under his own eyes. He or- 
dered that an hour should be set apart, three 
times a week, for public spiritual reading in 
his palace, and provided books of devotion 
for each one to read privately. 

Prayers were said in common every day, 
and he never failed to be present at them. 
As soon as he retired to rest in the evening, 
the palace gates were closed. He vv^s not 
content with "recommending a holy life to 
others, he set the example himself. He never 
laid aside the white habit of coarse cloth 
which he wore when only a simple friar, and 
in his dignity as supreme head of the Church, 
when he could have justified himself for in- 
dulging in outward state, did not do so, but 
remained as simple in his tastes and habits as 
he had always been. Although Pope he was 
truly a religious. He rose every night, and 
going into Saint Peter's, visited all the altars ; 
and when any difficulty arose in the govern- 
ment of the Church, he spent a whole night 



42 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

in prayer begging God to enlighten and 
guide him. 

Not only did he rigorously observe the 
fasts of the Church, but such was his mortifi- 
cation and love of penance, that, according to 
a contemporary author, the expense of his 
table did not amount to more than seventeen 
cents a day. 

His medical advisers having insisted upon 
his taking wine, he mixed a few drops with 
water, and imposed upon himself the penance 
not to drink more than three times at the 
same meal. And lest the sufferings of his di- 
vine Lord Jesus Christ should ever be absent 
from his mind, he caused a crucifix to be 
placed on the table, with the inscription writ- 
ten at the foot : *' Be it far from me to glory 
except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,'* 
so that whilst he refreshed his body with nec- 
essary food his soul might not be drawn away 
from the contemplation of heavenly things. 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 43 



CHAPTER VIII. 

SOON after his election, St. Pius gathered 
the Cardinals together to consider the best 
means of averting the anger of God, which 
seemed to have fallen on the world, to con- 
sider the surest means for staying the progress 
of heresy, and to take steps for breaking the 
aggressive power of the Turks. He boldly 
reminded them that as they were called by 
God to rule the Church, they must ever be 
the first to set a good example. ** It is to 
you/' he said, " that Jesus Christ spoke those 
words : * You are the light of the world, 
you are the salt of the earth.* " 

He began the work of reformation in faith 
and morals by reforming Rome, the centre of 
Christianity. The city was overrun with 
courtezans. Saint Pius published an edict 
against them, in which he banished them 
from the pontifical states ; and when several 
Roman magistrates represented to him that 
it would be next to impossible to carry out 



44 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

the decree, Pius could hardly control his in- 
dignation, and said : " You ought to blush 
to make yourselves the advocates of these 
pests, but if you prefer to live amongst aban- 
doned women, I will myself leave Rome and 
establish my see elsewhere.'* His firmness 
frightened the richest and most notorious 
among them, and they obeyed his commands, 
taking refuge in the large cities of Ital}^ All 
who remained were forced to live in a very 
solitary part of the city, and many abandoned 
their evil life. When Pius heard of this, he 
assisted them generously from his own purse, 
to prevent their falling into poverty, and thus 
be tempted to return to their infamous life. 
He also expelled the Jews from the states of 
the Church. They made a trade of telling for- 
tunes by the stars, and were engaged in usury. 
He allowed them, however, to remain in 
Rome and Ancona, where they were thought 
to be necessary to carry on the trade with 
the Levant. But both in Ancona and Rome, 
he insisted on their living in a particular quar- 
ter of the city, and forbade them to leave it un- 
less they wore an orange-colored hat, so that 
every one might at once know them to be Jews. 



The Life of 5 1. Pius the Fifth. 45 

When he was Cardinal he had made great 
efforts to convince some of the most learned 
and" renowned Jews of their errors. One of 
them, a Rabbi, Elias Carcossi, wishing to get 
rid of him, said : '* I will become a Christian 
when you become Pope." He forgot this, 
but Saint Pius did not. One day the Jew 
was summoned to the Pope's presence, and 
gently reminded of his promise. Elias 
could not deny it, and returned to his home 
sad and disconsolate. Pius spent the whole 
night in prayer for his conversion, recom- 
mending him especially to the intercession of 
the Blessed Virgin, the destroyer of heresies, 
and next morning the Jew, with his three 
children, went to the Pope, imploring the 
grace of Christian baptism. Pius baptized 
them himself, and gave Elias his own name of 
Michael. The wonderful and sudden con- 
version of this influential Rabbi led to many 
others, and they became so numerous that 
the Pope found it necessary to establish a 
home for Jewish catechumens, where they 
could receive full instructions before being 
received into the Church. He abolished a 
number of abuses which had been allowed m 
Rome by his predecessors. 



46 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

The horse racing during the Carnival took 
place in front of Saint Peter's. Saint Pius 
looked upon it as a profanation, that the soil 
which had been bedewed with the blood of 
martyrs should be the scene of such irrelig- 
ious amusements. He did not wish to forbid 
the races, which attracted thousands of stran- 
gers into the city, and were a great benefit to 
the tradesmen, but he changed the place 
where they were held. 

He found many pagan statues in the art 
galleries of the Vatican palace, and sent them 
to the Capitol to be arranged in a museum. 
The city magistrates were so grateful for this 
donation that they ordered that in future the 
magistrates should attend at a solemn Mass in 
the Dominican Church of the Minerva on 
the 17th of January, the joint anniversary of 
Saint Pius' birth and coronation, and that they 
should offer each year on that day a silver gilt 
chalice to the Pope ; a ceremony observed 
until recent times. Towards the end of his 
life the Roman senate, wishing to perpetuate 
the memory of his government, resolved to 
erect a bronze statue of him in the Capitol, 
but no sooner did he hear of their intention 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 47 

than he strictly forbade it, and said that if any 
good had been done during his pontificate, he 
would rather the memory of it should be en- 
graved in the hearts of his beloved people 
than on a statue. 

Saint Pius did much for education. Under 
his care schools for the children of the poor 
were multiplied, and ampl}^ endow^ed. He 
gave a large donation to the Jesuits of Avig- 
non, in France, for educational purposes ; and 
founded and endowed a magnificent college at 
Pavia which still bears his name. He always 
encouraged literature. The celebrated Surius, 
having written the Jives of the Saints, he 
w^rote to commend him for his pious labors. 
The Centuriators of Magdeburg, having con- 
centrated in one work all the malignant cal- 
umnies against God's holy Church, Saint 
Pius wished that a refutation should appear 
in Germany, the same country in which the 
attack on the Church had been made. 

He also did much to encourage the mechan- 
ical arts, and for this purpose gave 10,000 
crowns to found a manufactory of woollen 
stuffs. This establishment employed so many 
hands, sustained so great a number of fami- 



48 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

lies, and did so much good in Rome, that the 
senate caused a laudatory inscription to be 
put up on the gate of the manufactory, near 
the Tiberini fountain. 

He often visited the hospitals, to teach by 
his own example what care should be given 
to the sick. He spoke to all the invalids, con- 
soled them, exhorted them to bear their sick- 
ness patiently, and to turn their sufferings 
into merits, by uniting them to the sufferings 
of Our Divine Lord. During one of these 
visits he gave 20,000 crowns to the hospital 
of the Holy Ghost, and when he had made 
a thorough visitation of the hospital under 
the care of the Brothers Hospitallers of Saint 
John of God, he confirmed their congrega- 
tion. 

He appointed eminent prelates to visit those 
prisons in which debtors were confined, and 
gave them power to liberate all who had fall- 
en into sickness in prison, paying their debts 
himself ; and also authorizing them to set at 
liberty those who never could hope to pay 
their debts, and those who were willing to 
pay as much as they were able. 

Having learned that many galley-slaves 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 49 

were still in chains, although their term of 
punishment had expired, he deputed Prince 
x\ndrew Doria to visit all the ships in the 
pontifical states, and to free those who had 
been so unjustly detained. He published a 
Bull excommunicating those who pillaged 
shipwrecks. He declared slaves who had 
embraced Christianity Roman citizens, to 
show his esteem for the holy sacrament of 
Baptism. 

He spent much in works of utility. Good 
water was brought from Salona to Rome for 
the public fountains. The two Basilicas of 
Saint Peter and Saint John Lateran were rich- 
ly decorated at his expense, and he added 
many treasures to the Vatican museums. 




50 The Life of St^ Pius the Fifth. 



CHAPTER IX. 

SAINT Pius delivered the pontifical states 
from brigands. The chief brigand, Mari- 
ano d'Ascoli, escaped the vigilance of the 
Pope*s officers. One day a peasant went to 
the Pope to deliver Mariano into his power. 
** How will you doit?" said Pius to him. 
** He trusts me/* answered the man ; *' I can 
easily entice him into my house.'* '* Never/* 
indignantly replied the Pope, " never will I 
authorize you to do so shameful a deed. God 
will find me some way of chastising this brig- 
and without thus abusing friendship.'* Mari- 
ano, having heard of this noble answer, volun- 
tarily retired from the Pope*s states, and 
never re-entered them. 

Saint Pius next turned his attention to the 
instruction of ignorant Christians. He looked 
upon ignorance of Christian doctrine, and of 
the teachings of morality, as the principal 
cause of the disorders which affected the 
Church ; rightly judging that a more intimate 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 51 

knowledge of the teachings of religion would 
lead to a more perfect practise of Christian 
virtues. He, therefore, instituted the confra- 
ternity of Christian Doctrine, whose members 
bound themselves to explain the catechism 
every Sunday and holy-day in certain 
Churches. And when he saw the eagerness 
for instruction, and the great good this did, 
he granted indulgences to the teachers and to 
those who attended the instructions, and 
by a bull addressed to the Bishops of the 
Catholic world he warmly exhorted them to 
establish this confraternity in their dioceses. 

The immense amount of work the Pope 
had burdened himself with now began to tell 
on his constitution, and he was advised by his 
physicians and confessor to choose a confi- 
dential friend who could relieve him of some 
of the temporal duties of his office. It had 
often been the custom for the Popes to give 
the Cardinal's hat to some relative who was in- 
vested with the temporal charge of the Ponti- 
fical States. This custom, although harmless 
in itself, had been abused, and Saint Pius had 
made a resolution not to raise any of his re- 
lations to ecclesiastical honors ; — but when the 



52 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

Cardinals themselves chose Michael Bonelli, 
his sister's grandson, for this office, he could 
not refuse, especially as Bonelli had shown 
his fitness for the office. He was a Domini- 
can, and had become known by the name of 
Cardinal Alexandrine, the same name which 
Saint Pius had borne before his elevation to 
the Pontifical throne. 

Although Saint Pius had given w^ay, against 
his own wishes, to the desires of the Cardi- 
nals, he soon let it be known that no abuse 
would be allowed in consequence of this ap- 
pointment ; for the first thing which he or- 
dered his nephew to do was to publish a 
solemn decree, intended to render nepotism 
impossible for the future. The pontifical 
Bull obliged all the Cardinals, by oath, to op- 
pose any future Pope who should wish to 
give away any of the property of the Church 
to his relations, and to take an oath that they 
would never seek to be freed from this oath, 
nor to accept any dispensation from its bind- 
ing force, should any future Pope wish to re- 
lease them from it. 

He gave each of his nephews a small dona- 
tion, suitable to their lowly state in life, but 
refused to do more for them. 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 53 

One of his nieces, having married a man of 
talent, the command of the Castle of San 
Angelo was confided to him. A nephew was 
married to the daughter of the Pope*s secre- 
tary. Saint Pius told the young woman that 
none of his relations were to hope to become 
rich simply because they were of the same 
family as the Pope. He sent her a mule, 
saddle, and two panniers, recommending her 
not to travel to Rome in any other way. 
Another nephew, fighting against the Turks, 
was made a prisoner. Pius ransomed him, 
gave him a horse and fire arms, and made him 
Captain of a troop ; — -but the )^oung man mis- 
behaved himself and Saint Pius at once or- 
dered him to leave Rome. 

A nobleman from Bosco went in person to 
express the congratulations of the inhabitants 
of his native town on his elevation to the 
papal throne, and presented him with the 
Lordship of that town. " But what am I to 
do with the town?" asked Pius. ** Your 
holiness," answered the Marquis, has a family 
to whom it would be welcome." " True," 
said the Pope, '* true I have many nephews 
and nieces, but during my lifetime they will 



54 l^h^ Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

never have any higher title than what they 
received from their fathers. And you must 
know, also, that if, after receiving this mark 
of generosity from Bosco, I should feel obliged 
to return it with some greater favor, I am 
not able to do so, having recently tied my 
hands, as well as those of my successors, by a 
stringent ordination." 

But having refused this homage he accepted 
one of a different kind, one much more agree- 
able to him. When he was quite young he 
assisted a friend one day to set a vine. After 
they had planted it, St. Pius said : '* We have 
lost our time, no one will ever drink wine 
made from this vine/' He was mistaken, how- 
ever, for it grew and flourished. When Pius 
became Pope, the friend of his youth filled a 
little barrel with wine made from it, and car- 
rying it on his head, appeared one day in his 
village costume before the Pope. Pius joy- 
fully welcomed him. The man presented the 
little barrel and said: ^^ Your hoHness must 
allow you were not infallible when you said 
that no wine would ever be made from the 
vine you and I planted ; behold here is some 
of it." 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 55 

His benevolence was not sufficient, however, 
to screen him from insult. A few days after 
his election the pious Romans were scandal- 
ized to read on the walls of the city the name 
of Pius the Fifth accompanied by these words : 
"- He was made man,'* written in irony under- 
neath. The author of this insult turned out 
to be an ecclesiastic, who had- been refused a 
canonry he had begged from the Pope. 
When it was known who was the author Pius 
sent for him, and required an avowal of his 
fault, and said : ** My friend, when you see 
me in fault I beg of you to let me know of it, 
so that I may correct it." After which he 
dismissed him. 




56 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 



CHAPTER X. 

SAINT Pius deserves a high place among the 
prelates of God's holy Church who have 
merited the name of ecclesiastical reformers. 

He began b}^ enforcing the observance of 
the decrees of the Council of Trent in all parts 
of the Catholic world. They had been ac- 
cepted immediately by a few countries only : 
in Portugal, the republic of Venice, and the 
Swiss Cantons; Philip the Second published 
them wuth certain restrictions in Spain, Flan- 
ders and in his Italian states. In France the 
Queen Regent, Catherine de Medicis, was 
afraid to offend the Calvinists, who looked 
upon the decrees as especially directed against 
themselves, but her son, Charles 9th, promised 
to publish them, not all at one time, but by 
degrees. The German Court was not at first 
more favorably inclined to the decrees that 
France. — Poland resisted a long time before 
consenting to their publication. 

The name of Pius the Fifth must always be 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 57 

associated with the Catechism of the Council 
of Trent. It was already finished when he be- 
came Pope, and only awaited the final appro- 
bation of the Vicar of Christ. He approved 
•it at once, and ordered that it should be trans- 
lated into French, German, and Polish. He 
wrote to many Catholic Bishops to recom- 
mend it, and to remind them that they them- 
selves must give a good example by living in 
conformity with its teachings; and when it 
seemed as if his letters had produced little 
effect, he ordered his nuncios to second in 
every way the intentions of the Council. 

Episcopal residence was one of the decrees 
of the Council, and he did his utmost to see 
that it was obeyed, reminding Bishops and 
priests of the care our Divine Redeemer took of 
his flock, shedding his precious blood for the 
salvation of sinners. 

Another very wise ordination of the Coun- 
cil was the establishment of ecclesiastical sem- 
inaries in every diocese. Until then the uni- 
versities had been the only centres of educa- 
tion open to students, who attended in them lec- 
tures of theology, law and medicine. Between 
the classes the students were masters of their 



58 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 

own time, and in this way became exposed 
to all the dangers which beset youth uncon- 
trolled by the wholesome influence of home 
and its sacred ties ; and thus it was that many 
holy vocations were lost. Several pious ec- 
clesiastics, from time to time, had endeavored 
to remedy this evil, by founding houses in 
which ecclesiastical students could live, but 
such homes were to be found only in one or 
two cities. The fathers of the Council of 
Trent wished to extend this custom to the 
whole world, and had ordered that ecclesias- 
tical seminaries should be established in 
every diocese. Some Bishops had been very 
slow in carrying out this decree, but St. Pius 
wrote to them in energetic terms to remind 
them of their duty. 

He made many reforms in the administra- 
tion of Church benefices, and put an end to 
the pernicious practice of making them he- 
reditary in families. And when it was rep- 
resented to him that the laws he thus made 
would ruin the Roman Court, he answered, 
" It were better that the Roman Court should 
be ruined than the Catholic Church." 

He also did much for the reform of relig- 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 59 

lous orders. He ordered that the Regular 
clerks, instituted by Saint Jerome Emilian, 
should in future take the three vows of 
holy religion. He re-organized the Order of 
Citeaux in Sicily, where it was almost ruined ; 
he restored unity to the Servites, who had 
separated into two bodies, and revived strict 
discipline among the Minims in France. 




6o The Life of St. Pms the Fifth. 



CHAPTER XI. 

IN England Catholics were groaning under 
the tyranny of Elizabeth, the illegitimate 
daughter of Henry the Eighth. Little could 
the Pope do to aid them, but what little he 
could he did. It was the aim of St. Pius to 
unite the Catholic princes of Europe in a 
league against the countries which had em- 
braced the new religious opinions. 

The beautiful Mary Queen of Scots, and 
the family of her first husband, Francis of 
Lorraine, belonged to the Catholic party, 
Elizabeth of England to the Protestant faction. 
The Queen of England ascended the throne 
first. As soon as she felt secure she threw 
off the mask, openly professed Protestantism, 
and very quickly uprooted and destroyed 
everything Catholic in her kingdom. Mary 
Stewart succeeded to the Scottish throne at 
the death of her father, James the First, when 
only an infant. She was taken to France, by 
her mother Mary of Lorraine, when i6 years 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 6i 

of age, and married to the Dauphin, who died 
soon afterwards. On her return to Scotland 
she met with a sorry welcome from her sub- 
jects, who hated her because she was a de- 
vout Cathohc. Of exquisite beauty and rare 
talents, she found herself the rival of EHza- 
beth, who, to the ability of a man, united the 
lack of virtue only too common in the law- 
less age which succeeded the birth of Protes- 
tantism. Elizabeth hated her because she 
knew the throne she disgraced was Mary's 
birthright, and also on account of her beauty. 
Cool and crafty, Elizabeth, one of the most 
odious women in history, watched every 
movement of her rival, and lay in wait to take 
advantage of any mistake the warm-hearted 
young Queen of Scots might make in her 
career. 

Every student of history knows the story 
of Mary's misfortunes ; how the beautiful 
young Queen was made the tool of ambition, 
her affections outraged, her virtues denied, 
her chastity assailed, until at last, overcome 
by misfortune, she threw herself on the mercy 
of her merciless rival, and sought protection 
from her cousin. 



62 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

When St. Pius became Pope Queen Mary 
had already travelled far on the road of mis- 
fortune. From her prison she wrote several 
times to him, and he answered her letters in 
consoling terms, bidding her be resigned un- 
der her misfortunes, and promising he would 
do all in his power to aid her ; and when he 
found that all other means failed, he excom- 
municated Queen Elizabeth. He kept back 
the excommunication for some time, hoping 
the Queen of England would relent; but 
when he found that Queen Mary was dragged 
from one prison to another, he issued a Bull, 
in which Elizabeth was cut off from the bod}'' 
of the faithful of Christ, and her subjects freed 
from their allegiance. All his efforts were in 
vain ; the Queen of Scots was beheaded in 
Fotheringay Castle, and with her last breath 
protested that she was unjustly condemned, 
and that she died, as she had lived, a Catholic. 



The Life of St^ Pius the Fifth. 63 



CHAPTER XII. 

SAINT Pius devoted much of his attention 
to America, then but recently discovered, 
and above all set his face against slavery in 
the new world. The greatest pagan legis- 
lators never rose so high as to conceive soci- 
ety without slavery ; but Christianity, by 
boldly proclaiming the equality of man, dealt 
a fatal blow to this iniquitous system. Our 
Divine Redeemer, taking upon himself our 
human nature, raised man to a higher state than 
that which man had enjoyed before, and the 
religion which he founded, by declaring every 
man equal in God's sight, put an end to the 
degrading theories of antiquity. The Catho- 
lic Church never ceased her efforts to destroy 
slavery until the last chain which bound man 
captive to the will of him who had made 
himself his master had been broken, and the 
dignity of man triumphantly vindicated. 

The natives of America listened eagerly 
to the voice of the missionaries who preached 



64 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

the Christian faith to them, but when they 
saw the evil lives of many Christians they 
concluded that a religion which produced 
such evil results, could never have come from 
heaven, and the efforts of the pious mission- 
aries, Benedictines, Jesuits, Franciscans, and 
Dominicans were thwarted by the cruelty 
and wickedness of European Christians. The 
great Dominican missionary de las Casas, died 
worn out with unceasing efforts Qn behalf of 
the Lidians, but not until he had seen the see 
of Peter occupied by a fellow religious, who 
he knew would befriend his beloved converts 
in the land of the west. 

From America Saint Pius soon received in- 
numerable complaints sent by the missionaries 
of every religious Order, that the evil lives of 
the European settlers were destroying all the 
good they had done. He wrote to the kings 
of Spain and Portugal to encourage them to 
propagate the Catholic faith in their new 
western dominions. He also wrote to Car- 
dinal Spinosa, Minister of Philip the Second, 
of Spain. 

Some evil-minded men attempted his life. 
They poisoned a crucifix which he used in 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 65 

his private devotions. One day, after having 
knelt some time in prayer before this crucifix, 
little suspecting the danger, he was about to 
raise himself to its feet, when by a miracle the 
feet of the image of Christ on the cross drew 
back. He called his attendants, w^ho took it 
and wiped it with a piece of bread, which they 
gave to some dogs to eat. The dogs died 
immediately. The holy Pope w^ould not al- 
low any attempt to be made to find out the 
dastardly men who thus cruelly tried to take 
away his life. 

We have already spoken of the friendship 
between Saint Pius and Saint Charles Bor^ 
romeo. Saint Pius gave him very great 
spiritual powers, to enable him to work a com- 
plete reformation in morals and discipline in 
his diocese of Milan. As soon as St. Charles 
began the needy reform, murmurs arose on all 
sides. The civil authorities opposed him, 
and seizing one of the Archbishop's officers, 
maltreated him and banished him from the 
city. He complained to the King of Spain, 
Milan being a part of the Spanish dominions 
at that time, and also laid a complaint before 
the Pope. 



66 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

Saint Charles notified the canons of La 
Scala that he was about to make an arch- 
episcopal visitation. They closed their church 
and house, and went so far as to shoot at the 
cross which was carried before the Arch- 
bishop, when he arrived to make the visitation. 
*' The disciple is not above his Master,*' said 
St. Charles ; '' if they persecute me they will 
also persecute you.'* But his meekness did 
not prevent him from doing his duty ; he in- 
terdicted the church and excommunicated all 
the members of the Chapter. After many 
delays the Governor of Milan was ordered 
by the King of Spain to withdraw all opposi- 
tion against the reforms, the canons were 
compelled to make satisfaction, and the ban- 
ished officer was recalled. 

Saint Charles vvas accustomed to spend 
some time every evening, after the Angelus, 
in prayer with his servants in his private 
chapel. Many pious persons were also ad- 
mitted. One evening, as he knelt before the 
altar praying as usual, he was shot at, and the 
assassin was proved to be a monk named Jer- 
ome Farina, of the Order of the Humiliati, 
This Order, founded in the twelfth century, 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 67 

preserved its fervor for hundreds of years, 
but excessive riches had gradually ruined its 
monastic spirit. Cardinal Borromeo had 
been charged b}^ St. Pius with the task of re- 
forming it. At that time the whole Order 
did not number more than 164 members, but 
they possessed 94 convents. wSaint Charles 
had convoked the Chapter General of the Or- 
der at Cremona, where their ancient rule was 
re-established. Some of its members, how- 
ever, rebelled against this decision, and Fa- 
ther Jerome Farina determined to get rid of 
the reform and their reformer at the same 
time, by shooting him. 

Although Saint Charles had received a 
deadly wound, he remained calm and contin-- 
ued the prayers as usual ; but when he rose 
from his knees he found that the ball had not 
pierced his rochet, nor even blackened it ; it 
left a slight mark, and then fell at his feet. 
The wretched monk escaped, and St. Charles 
ordered that no one should pursue him. 

When St. Pius heard of it he shed tears, 
and assembled a Consistory to invite all the 
Cardinals to join in thanks to God for the 
happy escape. He ordered the Bishop of 



68 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

Lodi to investigate the matter. Two pro- 
vosts of the Order were arrested, but they dis- 
avowed all knowledge of the matter, named 
the assassin, and said that he had escaped to 
Savoy. He was arrested, taken to Milan, 
degraded from his priestly office, and ex- 
ecuted, after having confessed his crime with 
tears of repentance. By a Bull dated Feb. 
8th, 1570, Saint Pius forever suppressed the 
whole Order. Pensions were granted to all 
those members who had accepted the reform, 
and the rest of the revenues were distributed 
to the poor confraternities and charitable in- 
stitutions, or devoted to founding an eccle- 
siastical seminary. 




The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 69 



CHAPTER XIII. 

WE now come to an incident in the life of 
St. Pius the Fifth which shows us his 
character in a new light. We have seen how 
stern he could be when called upon to defend 
**the truth once delivered to the saints'* 
against the insidious attacks of heresy ; now 
we see how firm he was in defending those 
who were accused falsely and unjustly. 

That bugbear of Protestants, the Inquisi- 
tion, in its beginning had been a purely ec- 
clesiastical court, but in Spain, under Philip 
IL, it became an odious state power. When 
Pius the Fifth became Pope, the Dominican 
Archbishop of Toledo, Bartholomew of Car- 
ranza, was languishing in its prisons. He 
had been employed by Emperor Charles V, 
in difficult missions in England and Flan- 
ders, had been one of the prelates at the 
Council of Trent, raised to the Archbishopric 
of Toledo by Philip IL, and had assisted at 
the last moments of Charles Fifth. The 



70 The Life of SL Pius the Fifth. ' 

whole of Europe was astonished when this 
learned and zealous prelate was accused of 
heresy, and a catechism, which he had com- 
piled, examined by the Spanish Inquisition. 

The rapid spread of heresy in the north of 
Europe caused great alarm in Spain, and 
several Bishops were suspected of teaching 
false doctrine. Paul IV. published a Bull, in 
1559, in which he says that being afraid of 
the increase of heresy in Spain, he had cause to 
suspect several Spanish prelates, and there- 
fore he authorized the Spanish Grand Inquisi- 
tor to examine into the doctrine of Bishops, 
Archbishops, and Primates in Spain ; to take 
action against them if necessary, and, in case 
of evasion, to detain them in prison, but 
in all cases to send them to Rome as soon 
as possible, to be tried there by the proper 
ecclesiastical courts. 

The Archbishop of Toledo was one of those 
proceeded against in virtue of powers granted 
by this Bull. He was arrested during an 
Episcopal visitation. The Grand Inquisitor 
sent the accusations to Rome, but detained 
him in prison. 

When Pius IV. succeeded to Paul IV. he 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 71 

allowed the trial to take place in Spain, but 
reserved to himself the final judgment, 
Philip wished that judgment should also be 
pronounced in Spain. The Grand Inquisitor 
having represented to him what an effect 
judgment pronounced in Madrid would have 
on the people, he suggested to the king that 
he merited the relaxation of ordinary jurisdic- 
tion on account of the great services he had 
done to the Church, and reminded him that 
the facts which had caused the Archbishop 
to be accused had taken place before his ele- 
vation to the Episcopate, and maintained that 
the Pope ought to send delegates to Spain to 
judge the case, in concert with the officers of 
the Inquisition. 

Pius IV. was at length obliged to yield, and 
sent four prelates to Madrid. They were 
Buon Compagno, afterwards Gregory XIII., 
the Archbishop of Rosano, afterwards Urban 
VII., Aldobrandini, Auditor of the Rota, and 
the General of the Franciscans, who became 
Sixtus V. Hardly had they set foot in Spain 
when the death of the Pope recalled them to 
Rome. 

Pius V. called the Archbishop of Toledo 



72 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

to Rome, the Grand Inquisitor was deposed, 
and when King Philip and the Inquisitor 
opposed the execution of these orders, he sent 
a nuncio to Madrid, with power to suspend 
all officers of the Inquisition should they re- 
sist any longer. He also wrote to the king, 
who seeing the determined character of the 
new Pope, gave way, and the Archbishop was 
liberated from prison, eleven months after the 
elevation of Pius, and after seven years of im- 
prisonment. He went to Rome at once with 
the nuncio, and having been tried, was fully 
acquitted. 

St. Pius next turned his attention to litur- 
gical reform, and made many corrections in 
the Roman Breviary and Missal. It was he 
who added the Gospel of St. John, ** In the 
beginning was the Word, &c.," to the end of 
the Mass, to keep the inestimable benefit of 
the Incarnation perpetually before the minds 
of the people. He also re-arranged the beau- 
tiful office of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 

Ecclesiastical chant also claimed his care. 
It has always been the spirit of the Catholic 
Church to use the fine arts as a means of 
raising: the mind to God, the author of all 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 73 

beauty. Architecture, under the influence of 
Christianity, has caught something of her 
heavenward aspirations ; the Gothic style 
shoots upwards, as if attempting to break the 
bonds which bind us to earth. Painting and 
sculpture, in the hands of Catholic artists, 
have cast off all taint of earth, opened to us 
the gate of paradise, and shown us man, not 
as seen on earth, but with something of the 
glorious spirituality of heaven ; while music 
has raised her voice in chants and strains so 
sublime, that they seem to have been wafted 
from heaven by angels' wings. 

Who has not felt his heart stirred by music? 
Like a siren, music can lure away the heart 
from purity and truth, but like an angel she 
can usher us into the presence of God. In 
the time of St. Pius church music was in 
danger of utterly declining. On the one side 
the cold puritanism of Lutheranism threat- 
ened to rob it of all aesthetic beauty ; while 
the voluptuous softness of modern music 
threatened to estrange it from the service of 
God. The weird and strange character of 
ancient ecclesiastical chant had long ago 
ceased to please the popular ear, and at the 



74 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

commencement of the sixteenth century had 
almost entirely disappeared from the churches. 
Yet nothing better had taken its place. 
Church music was often a travesty of the 
meaning of the words, and the musical com- 
posers of the time seemed determined to turn 
churches into theatres. 

Various attempts had been made to stay 
this evil. Pope Marcellus II. meditated for- 
bidding figured music altogether in the 
churches, but he only reigned twenty-two 
days, and died before carrying his design in- 
to execution. The Council of Trent content- 
ed itself with making some general regula- 
tions, and commanded all ecclesiastical stu- 
dents to study the church chant. Pius Fourth 
instituted a commission to examine the ques- 
tion, and placed St. Charles Borromeo and 
Cardinal Vitelozzi on the commission. St. 
Charles summoned to their aid an eminent mu- 
sician, John Pierluigi, commonly called Pales- 
trina, from the name of the city where he 
was born, requested him to compose a mass 
in which, while the modern science of music 
should be fully utilized, due decorum should 
be observed. With fear and trembling, for 



The Life of St. Phis the Fifth, 75 

on his success the fate of sacred music de- 
pended, Palestrina composed three masses, 
which were executed in the palace of Car- 
dinal Vitelozzi. One of them he called the 
Mass of Pope Marcellus, and on the manu- 
script was written in trembling characters, 
'* Aid me, O God/' This Mass was first per- 
formed, June 29, 1565, in the presence of Pius 
IV., and the whole of the sacred college of 
Cardinals. Figured sacred music was saved. 
Pius IV. soon after died, but Pius V. had 
fallen under the influence of the genius of 
Palestrina. He created him master of the 
Papal Chapel, and encouraged him in every 
way in the reform of church music. 



? 



76 The Life 0/ St. Pius the Fifth. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

WHEN we consider the immense amount 
of work which fell to St. Pius as Pope, 
we might naturally inquire what time he 
could devote to the worship of God, or to the 
care of his soul. Unceasingly engaged in 
attending to the wants of others, and to the 
good of the Church, we might suppose that he 
could give but little attention to private devo- 
tion. And yet such was far from being the case. 
He said Mass every day, and with such fervor 
that many Jews were converted by having as- 
sisted at it. He had a very tender devotion to 
the passion of Our Divine Lord, upon which 
he often meditated. He spent a long time in 
prayer early every morning, and became so 
absorbed in God, that his servants were fre- 
quently obliged to pull him by his habit when 
they had occasion to speak to him. He ob- 
tained from God all he asked in prayer. 
This became so w^ell known that the Sultan 
of the Turks feared his prayers more than 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. "j^j 

the Christian armies. He studied the Holy 
Scriptures unceasingly, and read some por- 
tion of the Life of St. Dominic, or of some 
other saint of the Dominican Order, every day. 
He never omitted saying the Rosary of the 
Blessed Virgin every day. He prayed fer- 
vently for the dead, and often said that he had 
received marvellous assistance in his greatest 
needs from that devotion. 

He gave audience to all kinds of persons, 
but particularly to the poor, whom he re- 
ceived with such kindness, and listened so 
patiently to all they had to say, that when he 
could not grant what they asked, they could 
see it was a great grief to him to refuse their 
petitions. 

At his meals he often caused the letters of 
St. Bernard to Pope Eugenius to be read 
aloud, so that he might profit by the advice 
of that great Saint. His example caused 
several Cardinals to revive the ancient cus- 
tom of reading at table. 

St. Pius was accustomed to say that it was 
only right that the soul should receive those 
interior lights, which are its true food, while 
the body received the food which refreshed 



78 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

it. His ill health never hindered him from 
attending to his public duties. Every morn- 
ing when he had said mass he gave audience 
to those who had business with him, and 
they were so numerous that it was often late in 
the evening before he could dismiss the last 
one. To gain time he sometimes admitted 
the ambassadors of the Christian powers 
and men of important business during his 
meals ; and it was no uncommon thing to see 
a long procession of monks and strangers of 
all nations wending its way through the nar- 
row streets of Rome by torch-light, early 
in the morning to the Vatican, to secure an 
audience with the Pope. He gave one day 
each month exclusively to the poor. 

Throughout his whole life St. Pius was re- 
markable for his austerity, and towards the 
end of his earthly career he became more 
and more self-denying. He suffered much 
from the stone ; this pain he accepted as a 
penance for his sins and firmly refused all 
remedies, from which his modesty shrank. 
He never could be prevailed upon to take 
the nourishing food recommended by his 
medical attendants. His repast consisted of 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 79 

eggs and wild chicory, or some other bitter 
herb, and he forbade any seasoning to be 
mixed with it. On fasting days he did not 
consider this austerity severe enough, and he 
ate only once, and even limited the number 
of glasses of water he drank. 

If his austerity and spirit of penance was 
great, his humility w^as, if possible, even 
greater. Some serious difficulties having 
arisen between him and the Viceroy of Na- 
ples, he sent Cardinal Corregio an order to 
place that kingdom under interdict. The 
Cardinal not only chose to disobey this com- 
mand, but boldly charged the Pope with un- 
wise haste, and told him every one would 
look upon this severe step more as the effect 
of passion than as zeal for the good of the 
Church. Saint Pius humbly listened to this 
reproof, thanked the Cardinal for it, and after- 
wards, in a full consistory of Cardinals, cited 
his conduct as worthy of approval. 

His humility made him wish to abdicate. 
Accordingly, one day he announced his inten- 
tion of retiring to the monastery of the Domin- 
ican Order which he had built at Bosco, his 
native place, that he might end his life in 



8o The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 

prayer and meditation. But his spiritual ad- 
viser and the Cardinals overcame his resolu- 
tion, by representing to him that the Church 
needed him, and seeing that God had given 
him charge over it, it was his duty to fulfil 
that charge and not to abandon it. He 
yielded, but with the condition that if God 
allowed him to see the Turks finally driven 
out of Christian lands he should be allowed to 
retire. 

He little loved the honors which his ex- 
alted dignity merited him. He regarded all 
such things as painful thorns, useful only inso- 
much as they warned him of the peril in 
which he was placed. He often declared 
that he had not had a single moment of peace 
since he had been Pope, that he was worthy 
of compassion, and that he bitterly repented 
having accepted a charge so far above his 
abilities. 

He preserved his chastity inviolate. His 
confessors, during the process of his canoniza- 
tion, attested that he had never committed any 
fault, much less any sin against that angelic 
virtue. 

He had a great horror of avarice, and al- 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 8i 

though he sorely needed money during the 
wars against the Turks, far from levying new- 
taxes, as he was advised to do, he threw the 
schemes for raising money by taxes proposed 
to him into the fire. No one could tell the 
amount he gave in charity during a pestilence 
which raged in Rome in his pontificate. His 
love of justice was very great. He was once 
offered 15,000 crowns to grant a marriage 
dispensation. He examined the case, and 
finding sufficient reasons for granting it, ac- 
ceded to the request, but steadily refused the 
money. And when it was represented that 
he could take it with a good conscience, he an- 
swered, in the words of the Council of Trent, 
that such dispensation should be granted 
** Raro, ex causa, et gratis," that is to say, 
*' seldom, not without cause, and free of ex- 
pense.'' A criminal condemned to death of- 
fered him 10,000 ducats to grant his life. St. 
Pius told him that justice is for the rich as 
well as the poor, and refused to listen to his 
request. 

He forgave those who had rendered him an 
evil turn, and never did the memory of any 
injury remain in his mind. He pardoned c^ 



82 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

libertine, who had lampooned him, saying to 
him : ** My friend, I would have punished you 
if you had insulted the Pope, but because you 
attacked only Michael Ghislieri, go in peace/* 
He had so great a love for everything holy, 
and so fervent an admiration of justice and 
truth, that he hated sin and evil in a very en- 
ergetic manner. Sometimes it happened that 
when he had given expression to his detesta- 
tion of sin, his conscience troubled him lest in 
his zeal he should have gone beyond the 
bounds of charity, and he could not rest until 
he had begged pardon from the person he 
thought he had offended. The Duke of Savoy 
once sent the Count della Trinita as ambas- 
sador to the Pope. This Count, it will be 
remembered, had been one of his most violent 
opposers, when he was Inquisitor in Lom- 
bardy. St. Pius saw the Count enter his pres- 
ence, and could not disguise his surprise. 
*' My lord ambassador," he said, *'I am that 
poor monk you once threatened to throw in- 
to a well.** But, recalling God to his mind, 
he continued : ^* You see how God is always 
readv to assist the weak.** The Count was 
much confused, but St. Pius assured him in 



The Life of St, Pins the Fifth. 83 

most affectionate words that he bore him no 
malice, cordially embraced him, and during 
the course of his diplomatic mission gave him 
every possible mark of confidence and es- 
teem. 

Many years before, when St. Pius, a poor 
friar, was travelling on foot along the hot and 
dusty road to Soncino, a young man, servant 
to a Milanese nobleman, seeing him carrying 
his bag on his shoulders, offered to give him a 
ride on his horse. St, Pius put his bag on the 
horse's back, and walked along side by side 
with the young man, entering into conversa- 
tion with him. At length they came to a river, 
when the young man paid the father's pas- 
sage on the ferry, and carried his bag on his 
horse's back until he came to the end of his 
journey. Saint Pius never forgot this kind 
service, and when he became Pope sent for 
the man, and gave him an honorable office in 
his household. 



84 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 



CHAPTER XV. 

IN the midst of his manifold occupations, 
and loaded with honors, St. Pius never 
forgot that he was a son of St. Dominic, and 
showered benefits upon the Order to which 
he belonged. In the 3^ear 1568 he gave the 
first rank among the mendicant Orders to the 
Dominicans. In 1569 he published a decree, 
in which he confirmed all the privileges and 
indulgences granted by his predecessors to 
the Dominican confraternity of the Holy 
Rosary. In this decree he says: ** The Roman 
Pontiffs have always been accustomed, when 
they were distressed by wars, spiritual or tem- 
poral, to beg the suffrages of the saints by 
prayers or litanies, and with holy David to 
raise their eyes to the holy mountains, full 
of confidence, and with a certain hope of suc- 
cor. Determined by their example, and in- 
spired, as is believed, by the Holy Spirit, the 
blessed Dominic, founder of the Order of 
Friar Preachers, on an occasion similar to that 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 85 

in which we now find ourselves, at a time 
when heresy blinded a very large number of 
secular persons, turning his eyes towards the 
heavens where the glorious Virgin Mary 
reigns, conceived an easy way, within the 
reach of all, called the Rosary, or psalter of 
the Mother of God, by repeating the angelic 
salutation one hundred and fifty times, in 
imitation of the Psalms of David. We our- 
selves also turn towards that mountain from 
whence comes all help, with eyes bathed in 
tears, and we tenderly exhort all faithful dis- 
ciples of Jesus Christ, In the name of the Lord, 
to follow his example,'* 

He always \yare the Dominican habit, and 
was very careful that the wool of which it 
was made should be of the coarsest, and once 
he severely reproved his major-domo, who 
provided him with a new habit of fine texture, 
steadily refusing to wear it. 

He had a very remarkable devotion to St. 
Thomas Aquinas. — Pope John the Twenty- 
second had canonized this holy saint, but 
Saint Pius declared him Doctor of the Uni- 
versal Church, and caused a very fine edition 
of his works to be published. 



86 The Life of St Pius the Fifth 

During the Carnival he always retired to 
the monastery of Santa Sabina, and there 
among his brethren he offered his prayers 
as an atonement for the sins of the people, 
who in their wild joy frequently forgot God 
and disobeyed his holy laws. 




The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 87 



CHAPTER XVI. 

LET us now briefly review all that St. 
Pius did in a few years for the good of 
the Catholic Church, intrusted by God to his 
care. 

He enforced the execution of the wise de- 
crees of the holy Council of Trent, in spite 
of negligence and opposition ; banished 
many abuses from Rome, the capital of the 
Christian world ; converted Jews by words 
and example ; purified Catholic art and 
music ; extirpated brigands from the states 
of the Church ; promoted education, and re- 
formed many religious orders. He threw 
the mantle of the Church over America, and 
defended the liberty of its natives. In his 
own life and conduct he showed the Catholic 
world an example of the salutary effect of 
Catholic doctrine on the weakness of human 
nature. He combated heresy and gave it 
an example of true reform, based not on the 
destructive doctrines of Luther, but founded 
on true Catholic principles. 



88 The Life of SL Pius the FiftL 

Such, in a few words, was the work St. Pius 
had already done in the Church of God. 

We now come to the crowning glory of 
his life, the great victory obtained by his ex- 
ertions, and in answer to his prayers, by the 
Christian armies over the Turks. For six or 
seven centuries the Turks had been the great 
enemy of the Christian religion. Ardently 
attached to their own superstition, they had 
long and successfully propagated it. The 
principles on which it was founded, that 
every true believer was bound to hate all 
other religions, that only one religion could 
exist in a state, that it was a most meritorious 
action to propagate the true religion, even by 
force of arms, that man is absolutely predes- 
tined to an eternity of misery or happiness, 
consequently that everything which happens 
is fate, that every true believer in Mahomet 
must offer to any Christian so unhappy as to 
fall into his power the bitter alternative of 
apostasy or death, all this gave a baneful 
power to Mahometanism, and by pandering 
to man's passions, allowing him four wives, 
and as many female slaves as he could afford 
to keep, the religion of Mahomet made 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 89 

willing slaves of its deluded disciples. No 
wonder, then, that this religion, so cruel to its 
enemies, so indulgent to its votaries, should 
have gained such rapid progress, and have 
taken so firm a hold on the people even in 
Christian lands. At the death of Mahomet, 
in the year 652, nearly the whole of Arabia 
had embraced his religion, and within fifty 
years of his death it had spread into Syria, 
Palestine, Egypt, North Africa and even in- 
to Spain. 

For centuries the Turks had been gradually 
advancing into Europe, beaten back from time 
to time, yet always extending their conquests. 
St. Pius was alive to the danger, and as soon 
as he became Pope set about to oppose their 
further progress. 

The knights of St. John, after a siege of six 
months, having been forced to evacuate the is- 
land of Rhodes, the Emperor Charles the Fifth 
offered them either the island of Malta, 
Goza or the City of Tripoli. The latter city 
was situated very badly for defence, lying in 
the very midst of Turks. Nor was Goza 
better able to sustain a siege. The Grand 
Master Villiers de Tlsle Adam, therefore, 



90 The Life of St. Phis the Fifth. 

chose the island of Malta, which he at once 
put into a state of defence. He died in the 
year 1534. 

After several successors came the heroic 
Lavalette. He was attacked in the year 1551 
by Sultan Solyman the Magnificent, against 
whom he defended the island for four months. 
Defeat was staring him in the face, when sev- 
eral Sicilian ships appeared on the horizon, 
and the Turks hastily raised the siege and set 
sail, leaving Lavalette and his brave knights 
masters of the island. Only six hundred were 
left alive, all of them either wounded or in- 
capable of carrying arms. Lavalette went to 
nearly all the Christian courts to beg assist- 
ance. He received warm encouragement 
from Pius the Fifth, who wrote a brief to him, 
encouraging him to remain in Malta, and to 
defend Europe against the Turks. St. Pius 
wrote also to the Viceroy of Naples and Sic- 
ily, to ask him to give all the aid he could, and 
sent nuncios to the princes of Italy, to the 
Doge of Venice, the Emperor Charles the 
Fifth, and Philip the Second of Spain. He 
himself gave 57,000 gold crowns. 

The clergy of the kingdom of Naples were 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 91 

to be taxed, and Pius, in order to further the 
good work, gave a dispensation to the work- 
men employed in the fortifications at Malta 
to work on Sundays after hearing Mass. 

No sooner were the fortifications com- 
pleted than the Turks again attacked Malta. 
They were repulsed. But they boldly sailed 
up the Adriatic into the bay of Venice. As 
soon as St. Pius heard of this new danger to 
Christianity he appointed Paul Orsini gener- 
al of his navy, and sent him to join the Span- 
ish fleet, and to give his personal encourage- 
ment to the good work he went to Ancona, to 
encourage the enlistment of soldiers and the 
preparation of ships. 

The Turks again retreated, but suddenly 
attacked the island of Scio. The inhabitants 
were celebrating Easter when the Turkish 
fleet appeared on the sea. It was not long 
before the whole island was given up to pil- 
lage. Scio was tributary to the Ottoman 
power, and was governed by the Guistiniani 
family. The Bishop, Timothy Guistiniani, 
of the Order of St. Dominic, seeing the bar- 
barians rushing towards the high altar in the 
cathedral, took the Blessed Sacrament from 



92 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

the tabernacle, ready to die rather than allow 
such a profanation. His bearing was so digni- 
fied and majestic that the Turks retired with 
the greatest respect. But the whole of his 
family was taken prisoner, and sent toCaffa. 
Two young princes of the family, lo and 
12 years of age, were taken captive, and 
sent to the palace of the Sultan to be ed- 
ucated in the Mohammedan religion. The 
Sultan promised to restore to them the es- 
tates and fortunes of their family if they 
would apostatize and persuade their subjects 
to do the same. But the brave boys refused 
to purchase liberty at such a price. When 
all persuasions failed they were condemned 
to die under the lash. The younger one was 
tortured first. When he had suflTered for 
some time the strokes were suspended and 
life was offered him if he would hold up his 
finger as a mark of obedience to the Sultanas 
wishes. He closed his fingers tightly and 
asked for death, which soon came. His 
brother, having been whipped, was left to 
die. He lingered three days in fearful ago- 
nies, thanking God for the grace of being 
thought worthy of giving his life for the faith. 



The Life of SL Pius the Fifth, 93 

When St. Pius heard this, he quickly 
called a Consistory, and in a voice broken 
with sobs related what had occurred. He 
wrote to Charles the 9th of France, who had 
entered into alliance with the Sultan, to beg 
him to use his influence for the liberation of 
the princes of the Guistiniani family, upon 
which the Sultan gave them their liberty. The 
intrepid Bishop Timothy Guistiniani obtained 
permission to return to Scio. He even jour- 
neyed to Constantinople to obtain the ransom 
of some captives. While there he obtained 
permission to build a new Cathedral, the old 
one having been destroyed. 

In the year 1569 the Italian borders of the 
Adriatic offered a favorable scope for an Ot- 
toman attack. A famine desolated the coun- 
try, the magistrates could not provide suffi- 
cient food, and the public treasury was emp- 
tied. A fire broke out in the Venetian arse- 
nal, which destroyed all the powder, thus 
the Venetians found themselves without food 
or means of defence. The Sultan, hearing 
this, determined to take advantage of their 
distress and attack them. 

When St. Pius learnt this new danger he 



94 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

equipped twelve ships, which the Venetians 
had sent to Ancona without crew or soldiers, 
and sent Louis de Torres, clerk of the Apos- 
tolic chamber, to Spain with a brief to Philip 
the Second, begging him to join the Christian 
princes in a league against the Turks, 
whereupon Philip promised to send his fleet 
to aid that of the Pope. The ships were 
ready for service in the summer of 1570. 
The command of the fleet he entrusted to 
Mark Antony Colonna. The Grand Master 
of Malta sent three ships, the Duke of 
Savoy four, Venice twelve and Spain fifteen. 
They sailed to the Isle of Cyprus to deliver 
Nicosia, the capital, and Famagosta, a sea- 
port, both of which had been invested by the 
Turks. Arrived there they found Nicosia in 
the hands of the enemy, who had pillaged the 
town, and slain the heroic Bishop. The 
Turkish commander filled four ships with 
treasures and captive maidens and sent them 
a present to Sultan Selim. One of these un- 
happy maidens, knowing the infamy to which 
she and her companions would be exposed, 
noticed a soldier entering the powder maga- 
zine, and threw a light into it, which exploded 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 95 

the vessel, the fire caught the other three 
ships, and all were destroyed. Thus this 
courageous maiden saved herself and her 
companions from a life of dishonor worse 
than death. 

After the capture of Nicosia the Turks 
marched to Famagosta. When the Christian 
fleet arrived near Cyprus, national dissension 
unhappily broke out among the commanders, 
and instead of going to the succor of the be- 
seiged inhabitants of Famagosta, they returned 
to their own countries. 

One can readily imagine the bitter sorrow 
and shame which filled the heart of St. Pius, 
when he heard that the Christian fleet had 
sailed almost in sight of the beleaguered city, 
and then returned, without any attempt to 
succor their Christian brethren. But his 
courage failed not, and putting his trust in 
God, after fasting and praying, he again sent 
ambassadors to the Christian princes, and 
with signal success. Austria, Spain, Portu- 
gal, Poland and the Republic of Venice en- 
tered into a league with the Pope to attack the 
Turks, and to deliver Europe from their fatal 
sway. A fleet was again fitted out, and put 



96 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

under the command of Don John of Austria. 
Many states sent soldiers, at the earnest re- 
quest of St. Pius. War was declared against 
the Turks, in the united names of the Pope, 
Philip the 2d of Spain, and the Republic of 
Venice. Pius eno^ao^ed himself to furnish 
twelve well-manned ships, 3,000 men on foot, 
270 horsemen, and to pay one-sixth of the ex- 
pense. When all was ready Pius celebrated 
Holy Massin the Vatican, before the Ambassa- 
dors of ail the Catholic powers, and at the foot 
of the altar he announced to the Roman peo- 
ple the formation of the league. He ordered 
the devotion of the forty hours in all the 
churches in Rome, and assisted at three 
days' processions to the Basilicas, during 
which the Rosary was recited. He published 
a jubilee for the whole world, to call down 
upon the Christian army the benediction of 
God. Such were the events that led to the 
glorious naval battle of Lepanto. 

When all was ready Don John of Austria, 
the supreme commander of the fleet and 
armies, left Spain in haste, and sent the Count 
of Cariglio to Rome to excuse him from 
seeking a personal audience with the Pope. 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 97 

St. Pius received the Count gladly, and em- 
bracing him said : ** Tell his highness never to 
forget the cause given him to defend ; tell 
him he will obtain the victory, because I 
promise it in God's name/' He spoke simi- 
lar words to Mark Antony Colonna : " Go, '' 
he said, when in aloud voice he blessed him 
and his fellow officers. ** Go in the name 
of Christ, fight against his enemies ; you will 
win." 

At Naples, during a solemn High Mass, 
Cardinal Grenville bestowed the baton of 
command upon Don John, and presented him 
with a standard sent by the Pope. From 
Naples Don John went to Messina, where 
Cardinal Odescalchi, Nuncio of the Pope 
to the army, ordered a three days' fast, pub- 
lished a plenary indulgence in the form of a 
jubilee, distributed Agnus Dei blessed espe- 
cially by the Pope for this purpose, and gave 
the soldiers holy communion with his own 
hands. 



98 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 



CHAPTER XVII. 

IT must have been a grand sight to see the 
magnificent fleet raise anchor on the morn- 
ing of September 15, 1571, under the bright 
rays of the Sicilian sun, and sail away to 
meet the enemy. It was divided into four 
squadrons. Don John commanded the main 
part, comprising 70 ships ; Andrew Doria led 
the right wing of 54 ships ; Venieri, the left, 
composed of the same number of Venetian ves- 
sels, and Mark Antony Colonna commanded 
the Pope's vessels, while John of Cardone 
went in advance with ten ships to discover the 
enemy. 

St Pius was present in spirit with the 
Christian fleet. Night and day he poured 
forth prayers to God for its success. And 
with reason did the holy pontiff implore the 
help of heaven, for the triumph of Mahome- 
tanism meant persecution of the cruellest kind 
for Christians, and threatened the very exist- 
ence of God's holy Church on earth. 



The Life of St Pius the Fifth, 99 

Famagosta, the city attacked in Cyprus by 
the Turks, having been honorably and brave- 
ly defended for eleven months, the Com- 
mander of the Turkish army, Mustapha 
Pascha, pretended to grant most honorable 
terms of capitulation to Bragadini the Gov- 
ernor; but just at the moment when he was 
entering the tent of the Turkish General to 
arrange the embarkation of the vanquished 
Christians, Mustapha, in a sudden transport of 
violent passion, ordered all the Christians to be 
put into chains. The unfortunate Governor 
was mutilated and condemned to carry stones 
for repairing the walls of the city. After 
three days of this humiliating work, Mus- 
tapha ordered him to be fla3^ed alive. Dur- 
ing his torments Bragadini recited the 
'* Miserere," and when he came to the verse, 
" Grant me a clean heart, O God,'' he died. 
His martyrdom took place August 17, 1571. 
His skin, stuffed with straw, was hoisted on 
the sail yard of one of the ships. Later on it 
was sent by the Christians to Venice, where 
it was carefully preserved as a holy relic in 
the Church of Saints John and Paul 

All the neighboring islands, fell into the 
hands of the Turks at the same time. 



loo The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 

When the news of these new disasters 
reached Rome, Saint Pius increased his alms 
and austerities. He ordered all the members 
of the convents and monasteries to pray 
without ceasing, before the Adorable Sacra- 
ment of the altar. He spent hours himself 
in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, and 
when called away for any duty caused some 
one to take his place until he returned. 

One day his treasurer took him from the 
altar to attend some important business with 
several Cardinals. All at once, as they were 
busily engaged, St. Pius rose suddenly, and 
ran to the window. He opened it eagerly, and 
leaned out a few moments in profound atten- 
tion. His attitude, his whole features, his 
manner showed great excitement, and return- 
ing quickly, he cried out : '* Let us not speak 
about business, it is not the time. Let us hast- 
en to thank God ; our army has gained the 
victory." He dismissed his attendants, and 
threw himself on his knees, in prayer, his face 
bathed in grateful tears. 

The Cardinals quickly spread the news in 
Rome. They took notice of the date and 
hour, October 7th, five o'clock in the after- 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, loi 

noon. It was the very moment when the 
cross triumphed over the crescent in the Bay 
of Lepanto. 

The Turks had been warned of the ap- 
proach of the Christian fleet, but refused to be- 
lieve it, not understanding how Christians 
could show so much courage. Don John re- 
connoitred the enemy, and then gave the order 
for attack. He disposed his ships in four 
separate bodies, taking the centre himself. 
He hoisted the standard given by the Pope 
and when the figure of Our Divine Lord was 
seen, cries of ardent love and devotion saluted 
it all along the line. He then went from 
galley to galley, in a small boat, haranguing 
the soldiers on each ship, and assuring them 
of a glorious victory. When he boarded his 
own ship again he knelt down on deck before 
the holy standard, and called upon God with 
deep humility to favor the brave men who 
had devoted their lives to the honor of 
hisw holy name. At the same moment a re- 
ligious gave the signal for prayer, and in a 
moment every soldier, turning his eyes 
towards the crucifix, devoutly made an act of 
contrition for his sins, and begged the for- 



J 02 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

giyeness of God. When they arose every 
one was filled with courage, feeling that the 
honor of God and the safety of the Christian 
Church depended on his own exertions. 

From the very commencement of the com- 
bat the elements seemed to favor the Chris- 
tians. The winds were certainly favorable, 
and this circumstance increased the soldiers' 
belief in victory. Hali Pascha, the command- 
er of the Turkish fleet, ordered the first shot. 
Don John answered by a round of cannon 
from his own ship. And then the combat be- 
came general. The Turks filled the air with 
their savage cries, to which the discordant 
sounds of their military music was added. 
The ships were soon enveloped in a cloud of 
dense smoke from the cannon, but the winds 
blew it on to the Turkish fleet, a decided ad- 
vantage for the Christians. 

At the commencement of the battle the 
Turks were confident of success, ^nd their 
first attack w^as terrible ; but their confidence 
soon changed into surprise, and they quickly 
learned the invincible spirit which animated 
their adversaries. In less than three hours 
the issue was no longer doubtful. Hali 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 103 

Pascha was killed by a musket shot, and a 
Spanish soldier pulled down the Turkish ban- 
ner. Colonna captured the ship which con- 
tained the children of Hali Pascha. This bat- 
tle was, in fact, so terrible a punishment to the 
Turks that it seemed as if God was revenging 
centuries of cruelty and insults to the Chris- 
tian faith. The slaughter was so great that 
the sea was covered with men's arms and 
legs, drowning men, torn sails, masts, oars 
and armor, all floating in the water. 10,000 
were taken prisoners, among whom were 
nearly 200 captains. 170 ships fell into the 
power of the Christians, 90 others were cast 
on shore and either burnt or dashed to pieces. 
The Christian loss was small in comparison, 
about 7500 killed, but thousands were 
wounded. 15,000 Christian prisoners were 
set at liberty. Night obliged the Christians 
to discontinue the pursuit. The Turkish 
prisoners afterwards declared that they had 
seen Jesus Christ appear in the sky, with the 
Holy Apostles Saints Peter and Paul and a 
multitude of angels, menacing them, which 
had caused them such terror that they could 
no longer know what they were doing. This 



I04 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth, 

miracle is commemorated in a picture still 
preserved in the Vatican. Dispatches were 
at once sent to the Pope to announce the 
glorious tidings. But Contarini, to whom 
they were entrusted, was detained by tem- 
pests. Saint Pius, sure of victory by divine 
revelation, could not conceal his astonishment 
that no news was received from Don John of 
Austria. It was not until the end of October 
that the Doge of Venice, who had received 
the happy tidings, sent the messenger to Rome 
to communicate it to the Pope. He arrived 
in Rome at midnight, and was at once admit- 
ted into the Pope*s presence. When Saint 
Pius heard all the particulars of the glorious 
and complete victory, he fell on his knees, and 
cried out in the fulness of his heart : '' He 
that is mighty hath done great things unto 
me and holy is his name." He then caused 
all the inmates of the pontifical palace to be 
assembled to join with him in thanking God. 
The next day the '* Te Deum '* was solemnl}'- 
sung in the four great basilicas, and in all the 
parish and monastic churches in Rome. The 
universal belief of the Roman people was that 
the Blessed Virgin Mary had granted this 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 105 

victory in answer to the prayers of Saint Pius. 
In memory of this great victory St. Pius 
added the invocation '' Auxilium Christia- 
norum Ora pro nobis/' '' Help of Christians, 
pray for us/' to the Litany of the Blessed 
Virgin Mary. 

He desired, above all things, to lead the 
people, flushed with victory, to a spirit of 
thankfulness to God, and, in order to teach 
them the value of prayer in human necessities, 
he instituted a feast, to be observed on the an- 
niversary of this battle, October 7, under the 
name of *' Our Lady of Victories. " 

The title of this feast was changed in the 
i6th century, by Pope Gregory 13th, to "• Our 
Lady of the Holy Rosary," under which title 
it is now kept in the Catholic Church on the 
first Sunday of October. 



io6 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

IT now only remained for Saint Pius to 
crown a saintly life with a holy death. Dur- 
ing the winter of the year 1571, he suffered 
excessiv^e pains from the stone ; early in Jan- 
uary his physicians declared that if he did 
not undergo an operation his life would be in 
danger. His modesty shrank from it, and he 
lived on until it came to Lent, when, although 
his weakness was very great, he began to 
fast as strictly as when he was in sound 
health. His attendants, wishing to keep him 
alive, mixed gravy with the vegetables he 
ate, but as soon as he tasted meat he said, 
" Would you wish me, during the short time 
I have to live, to break the laws which I have 
always kept and which God has given me 
the grace to keep for fifty-three years ? '* 

When the pain increased he was seen to go 
and kneel before a crucifix, and devoutly 
kissing it, often heard to murmur : " Lord ! 
Lord ! increase the pain, but also increase my 
patience.** 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 107 

He celebrated Holy Mass as often as he 
felt strong enough to do so, and when not able 
to ascend to the altar he assisted at a Mass 
said in his own room, and communicated often. 
On Holy Thursday he wished to receive 
Holy Communion from the hands of his 
nephew, Cardinal Alexandrine, and when the 
Cardinal pronounced the words, " May the 
body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve thy 
soul to life everlasting,'* he said, **I pray 
you apply to me the words which the 
Church uses for the dying : ' The Body of 
Our Lord Jesus Christ conduct your soul to 
eternal life/ '' 

The following day, Good Friday, April 4, 
1572, he caused a large cross to be carried 
into his oratory, and arising, went with bare 
feet to adore it, and to bathe the five wounds 
of our crucified Lord with his tears. 

The Pope's public audiences having been 
suspended, to allow him to spend the days yet 
left him in preparing for eternity, the report 
spread abroad in the city that he was dead, 
and Rome was filled with mourning and lam- 
entations ; and thus it happened that the 
holy pontiff was able to learn the fulfilment 



io8 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

of the pious wish he made on his elevation to 
the pontifical dignity, that the Romans would 
weep more for his death than they had done 
at his accession. 

He was so much moved, on hearing their 
grief, that he wished to give them his pontifical 
blessing once more. His spirit triumphed 
over his body : he donned his pontifical vest- 
ments on Easter Sunday, and was carried 
to the loggia, or balcony, above the principal 
entrance of St. Peter's, and for the last time 
blessed the people, with a voice so loud that 
he could be heard by every one in that vast 
multitude. 

A deputation ol the clergy and Roman no- 
bles waited on him, to offer their congratula- 
tions on his supposed recovery, but Saint 
Pius quickly told them of his real state. 
** My children," he said, '* I have no longer any 
business to transact except with God. The 
account which I shall soon have to render to 
him of all the deeds and words of my life re- 
quires me to employ all the powers of my 
soul to prepare for it.'* 

Nevertheless, he wished to take a solemn 
farewell of the relics of those Saints deposited 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 109 

in Rome, and on the twenty-first of April he 
announced his intention of making the sta- 
tions of the seven churches ; and it was in 
vain that his physicians and attendants at- 
tempted to shake his resolution. He set out 
on foot, upheld by the arms of attendants. 
His face was so pale that he seemed to be on 
the point of death. Mark Antony Colonna, 
who met him, was so alarmed at his 
state that he threw himself on his knees to 
beg him to be allowed to be carried back in a 
litter to his palace. The Holy Father sweet- 
ly set him aside and patiently continued on his 
self-imposed penance, rejoicing to suffer like his 
Divine Lord who trod the road to Calvar}^ At 
the Basilica of St. John Lateran he was again be- 
sought to discontinue his penance, and at 
least to defer the remainder until the follow- 
ing day. He only raised his eyes to heav- 
en, and said, **He who made everything will 
perfect his work.'' He ascended the Scala 
Santa on his knees, kissed the uppermost 
step three times, and could hardly tear him- 
self away from the holy place. 

On his return to the Vatican he learned of 
the arrival of a number of English Catholics, 



I lo The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

who had been forced by the persecutions of 
the tyrant Elizabeth to leave their native 
country. He sent for them to his presence, 
loaded them with every mark of favor, asked 
many questions about the state of religion in 
England, and gave them into the care of his 
nephew, Cardinal Alexandrine, bidding him 
attend to their temporal necessities. When he 
bade them farewell, he was heard to say : '' O 
my God! Thou knowest that I have always 
been ready to shed my blood for the salvation 
of that nation." 

He was so accustomed to the thought 
of death that he was never seen so calm as 
when death came near ; and when his severe 
sufferings drew tears from his attendants, he 
alone was tranquil, and forgetting himself, he 
set himself to console them. 

He ordered prayers to be recited day and 
night at his bedside, and especially loved to 
hear the words of the seven penitential 
psalms, which he requested should be read 
very slowly, so that he could excite his heart 
to contrition at every verse. The passion of 
Christ was read to him several times, and 
every time the Holy Name of Jesus was pro- 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 1 1 1 

nounced he uncovered his head, and when 
his hands became cold and lifeless he asked 
that some one should do that holy service for 
him. 

On the morning of April 30th, he announced 
that his hours were numbered, and begged 
the Bishop of Segniato administer to him the 
sacrament of extreme unction. 

He desired to kneel once more, and in that 
humble position prayed earnestly for the 
good of the Catholic Church. He did not 
wish his relations to be near him at the time 
of death, with the exception of Cardinal 
Alexandrine. He confided his last instruc- 
tions to members of the sacred college 
and requested that Father Caballi, Master 
General of the Dominican Order, and Cardi- 
nals Rusticucci, Montalta, and Aquaviva 
should be with him at the hour of death. 

Once, when every one believed him to have 
passed away, he revived, and with an animation 
wonderful in a dying man, addressed all pres- 
ent as follows : *^ If you love my mortal life, 
full of an infinity of miseries, you ought much 
more to love that unchangeable and blessed 
life which by the mercy of ^God I hope soon 



1 1 2 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

to enjoy in heaven. You know well that the 
greatest wish of my life has been to see the 
overthrow of the empire of the infidels, but 
because my sins and crimes have made me 
unworthy of enjoying the satisfaction of so 
happy an event, I adore the depths of the 
judgment of God, and acknowledge myself 
to be unworthy of that grace. It only re- 
mains for me, then, to recommend to you, with 
all my soul, that same Church which God 
committed to my care. Do your utmost to 
elect a successor full of zeal for the glory of 
God, who will be attached to no other inter- 
est in this world, and who will seek nothing 
but the welfare of Christianity.** 

When he said these words a little incident 
happened which proves the delicate perfec- 
tion of his chastity. In the movement of his 
arms one of them became bare. This 
wounded his natural purity, and he quickly 
tried to cover it again with the sleeve of his 
woolen tunic. 

He died reciting the Vesper hymn of pas- 
chal time. It was May day, 1572, in the even- 
ing. He was 68 years of age, and had reigned 
as Pope 6 years and 3 months. 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 1 13 

His physicians wished to testify to his su- 
perhuman courage, and made an autopsy, 
when they found three stones in the bladder. 
They declared his patience in such sufferings 
was little short of miraculous. 




^ 



1 14 The Life of SL Pius the Fifth. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

THE body of St. Pius was placed in a 
chapel in the Vatican, and the next day 
lay in state in St. Peter's. The crowd was 
immense, and the eagerness of the people to 
obtain some relic or memento of this great 
man and saint was such that they cut off 
the ornaments of his pontifical vestments and 
even attempted to pull out hairs from his 
beard and head, until the Swiss Guard were 
forced to interfere. For four days the crowd 
continued to press in, and the vast edifice 
was filled the whole time. Every one 
brought a rosary or some pious object, with 
which they touched his body. At the end of 
the day his holy body was temporarily placed 
in the chapel of St. Andrew. He had wished 
to be buried in the church of the Dominican 
monastery he had built at Bosco, his native 
village, not thinking himself worthy of being 
among the other Popes in Rome, and had 
caused a simple tomb to be erected where 



The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 115 

he wished to be buried, but when Sixtus the 
Fifth came to the pontifical chair he would not 
allow the body of his friend and benefactor 
to be taken away from Rome, and at his own 
expense built a magnificent chapel in the 
Basilica of Saint Mary Major, in which he 
placed a white marble monument, and there 
Saint Pius was buried January 9th, 1588. 

The death of the holy Pope caused great 
grief throughout the Catholic world. In 
Spain it was divinely revealed to Saint 
Teresa, who in presence of her sisters cried 
out in tears, *' Do not be astonished, my sis- 
ters! weep rather with me, because the 
Church is widowed of her holy pastor.'* 

Pope Sixtus the Fifth caused the process of 
canonization to be commenced, which was 
continued by Paul the Fifth and Urban the 
Eighth. The auditors of the Rota, having 
examined 146 witnesses, testified that Saint 
Pius had lived and died a virgin, that he 
never committed a single mortal sin, that he 
practised all the Christian virtues in an heroic 
degree, and that God had given him the gift 
of prophecy, and the grace of working mir- 
acles. 



r 1 6 The Life of St, Pius the Fifth. 

After this the sacred congregation decreed 
that masses of the dead should no longer be 
said for him, but that on the anniversary of 
his death the Mass of the Most Holy and 
Adorable Trinity should be said. Urban 
the Eighth confirmed this decree. 

The Superiors of the Dominican Order 
from time to time asked for his canonization, 
in which they were seconded by the kings of 
France, Spain, and Portugal. Father Thomas 
Rocaberti, Master General of the Dominican 
Order, having succeeded in obtaining the 
canonization of Saint Louis Bertrand and 
Saint Rose of Lima, took up the cause of Saint 
Pius with much enthusiasm in the year 1670, 
and in which he was much aided by the king 
of France. Saint Pius was beatified by Clem- 
ent X., April 27th, 1672, and solemnly canon- 
ized by Clement XL, May 22d, 1712. 

Many miracles were worked by him. He 
chased demons from the bodies of several 
possessed persons, and abandoned women 
were converted merely by gazing at his body 
lying in state after death. The Agnus Dei 
blessed by him were found to be possessed of 
particular power against fires, drowning, and 



The Life of St. Pius the Fifth, 1 1 7 

sudden danger of death. An inundation of 
the Tiber was stayed in a moment by throw- 
ing one of them into the flood, and some sol- 
diers who piously carried them about with 
them became well-nigh invulnerable. 

Pilgrims who go to Rome do not fail to 
visit the chapel of St. Pius in the Dominican 
Monastery of Santa Sabina. This chapel is 
the cell which he occupied when in that mon- 
astery. Above the altar is the picture of the 
miracle of the crucifix, on the right Saint 
Philip Neri is predicting the tiara to the holy 
religious, and on the left St. Pius picking up 
dust from the Vatican, and giving it to the 
Polish Ambassadors, who had begged some 
relics, saying to them, *^ Here is what you de- 
sire ; this dust was bathed for centuries with 
the blood of martyrs." On the wall opposite 
the altar is Saint Pius, kneeling and anxious- 
ly gazing through his palace window, while 
an angel at his side announces the victory of 
Lepanto. On the altar is a very beautiful 
crucifix, which belonged to him. It was pre- 
served in the Vatican, until Pius the Ninth, 
during one of his visits to Santa Sabina, 
gave it to the Fathers, saying it was to them 



1 1 8 The Life of St. Pius the Fifth. 

rather than to any one else it should belong. 
His feast is celebrated throughout the 
Christian world on May 5th. 

Prayer. 

Anthem. O Shepherd-Father, deign to keep 
Thy mind still on the folded sheep ; 
Plead with the Judge now as of old, 
For all within the faithful fold. 
V. Pray for us, O Blessed Pius, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who wast pleased to elect the 
Blessed Pius to the ofBce of chief Pontiff, for 
the defeat of the enemies of thy Church, and 
the restoration of divine worship, grant that 
we may be defended by his watchful guardian- 
ship, and be so intent upon thy holy service 
that, overcoming all the wiles of our enemies, 
we may enjoy eternal peace. Through Christ 
our Lord. Amen. 



THE 

HOLY MARTYRS OF GORCUM, 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcu^n. 1 2 1 



THE HOLY MARTYRS OF GORCUM. 



ST. JOHN OF COLOGNE, OF THE ORDER OF FRIAR 
PREACHERS, AND NINETEEN COMPANIONS. 



Jtily igtk. 

IN the sixteenth century Holland and Belgi- 
um were unwillingly subject to Spain. Pro- 
testantism was professed by large numbers of 
the inhabitants, and the Protestant leaders, 
making use of the people's natural enmity to- 
wards Spain, a staunch Catholic power, strove 
to impress upon their minds the idea that in 
order to be lovers of their own country they 
must belong to the Protestant party, and that 
the Catholics must necessarily be the friends of 
Spain, and enemies of their fatherland. This 
must be born in mind while reading the fol- 
lowing narrative of the sufferings and glorious 
death of the noble martyrs of Gorcum. — The 



122 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

King of Spain, Charles the Fifth, had intro- 
duced the Spanish Inquisition into Holland and 
Belgium, in order to check the rapid increase 
of heresy. When Philip the Second succeeded 
him his zeal for the Catholic faith led him to 
adopt still more severe measures. The Flem- 
ish Protestants, feeling insulted that the most 
important offices of state should be exclusive- 
ly filled by Spaniards, placed themselves un- 
der the united leadership of the Prince of 
Orange, the Count of Egmont, and the Count 
of Hoorne. — William Prince of Orange, the 
recognized leader of the Protestant party, or- 
ganized a petition to the King, signed not only 
by a large number of Protestants, but also by 
many Catholics, requesting that the Inquisi- 
tion should be suppressed, and that all mea- 
sures against heretics should be abolished. 

Not obtaining all they desired, the Protes- 
tants rose simultaneously all over the coun- 
try, many disaffected Calvinists having re- 
turned from France to aid them. They sacked 
churches and convents, destroyed images and 
holy pictures, and even damaged the magni- 
ficent Cathedral of Antwerp, the pride of the 
country. In Brabant alone four hundred 



The Holy Martyi's of G or cum. 1 23 

churches were sacked. This formidable ris- 
ing was, however, suppressed, and Philip, tak- 
ing the government of the country from the 
wise and prudent Margaret of Parma, placed 
it in the hands of the stern Duke of Alva, 
whom he sent into the country at the head of 
an army of picked troops. 

The Duke entered Brussels, 22d August, 
1567, and quickly brought the leaders of the 
rebellion to condign punishment. The Counts 
of Egmont and Hoorne were executed. The 
Prince of Orange, who, assisted by his brother, 
Louis of Nassau, attacked the Spaniards in 
Frieseland, Brabant and Guelderland, was 
defeated, upon which he carried the war from 
land to sea. The northern provinces then 
rose in rebellion, and it was at this juncture 
that the history of the Martyrdom of the Gor- 
cum Martyrs commences. 

Gorcum, originally Gorinchen, is a little 
town in Holland of six or seven thousand 
inhabitants, on the river Meuse, about 
twenty miles from Dordrecht. It is in the 
midst of a fertile country, and is chiefly 
noted for its salmon fisheries. 

At the time when our narrative commences 



1 24 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

the Catholics appeared to be more numerous 
in Gorcum than the Calvinists. The parish 
priest, Father Leonard Wichel, maintained 
that he could count two Catholics to every 
heretic; but there were many who were 
Catholics only so long as the Spanish flag 
floated over their heads, and this was quickly 
seen when the news of the taking of Dor- 
drecht by the Gueux reached their ears. The 
Catholics of Gorcum knew well that they 
would be the next to be attacked, and what 
they would have to expect. 

But although they trembled for their for- 
tunes and families, and still more for the 
priests and religious, yet, as often happens in 
similar cases, they took no steps to put the 
town in a state of defence. There w^as a Ca- 
puchin monastery in town, well known for the 
holiness of its inmates. The Guardian, Fath- 
er Nicolas Pik, was a native of Gorcum, and 
his brothers, sisters, and relations lived there. 
His nephew, Rutger Estius, brother of the 
historian of that name, a pious young man, 
did his utmost to persuade Father Nicolas to 
retire to a place of safety, and told him the 
horrors and cruelty of which the Gueux had 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 125 

been guilty in other towns. ** All that is 
very alarming/* answered Father Nicolas ; 
*' my natural weakness shudders at the thought 
of it, but I think I should be tempting God if 
I were to flee before such evils. Neither I 
nor my brothers will do so. We trust our- 
selves to God. If he puts us to the proof 
he will give us the courage to bear it.'' The 
young man insisted that prudence is a Chris- 
tian virtue, and that it is no sin or disgrace to 
fly from persecution. *' Perhaps not," an- 
swered the Guardian, " but have you thought 
of the bad effect which our flight would 
cause ? Do you think to abandon our friends 
would encourage them to defend themselves? 
No ! on the contrary it would only make mat- 
ters worse.*' But although he and his com- 
munity refused to fly, he ceased not in public 
and private to advise every one to hold him- 
self ready for all events, and to be prepared 
to die rather than to deny the faith. Yet, as 
his nephew's fears were well founded, he sent 
the church plate, the relics of the Saints, and 
the monastery library to the residence of his 
brother-in-law, the father of Rutger Estius ; 
but, thinking that the heretics would certainly 



1 26 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

plunder the houses of the principal Catholics 
he afterwards caused them to be taken to the- 
citadel. This citadel was built on the town 
walls, and was bathed at its feet by the waters 
of the river Meuse. It was looked upon as a 
secure refuge in time of need, and it was 
hoped it would hold out against all attacks, 
until succor could be obtained from some of 
those neighboring cities still loyal to the king. 

In the meantime, the Protestants of Gorcum 
sent messengers to Dordrecht to advise a sud- 
den attack upon the town, and at eight 
o*clock in the morning of June 25th, thirteen 
vessels, carrying one hundred and fifty sol- 
diers, suddenly appeared, coming up the riv- 
er from Dordrecht. They sailed almost to 
the walls of Gorcum, and their appearance 
caused great joy to the Protestants, and cast 
dismay into the hearts of the faithful Catho- 
lics. 

Father Nicolas Pik immediately called his 
friars together, and after a short but warm 
exhortation, gave each one permission to seek 
safety where he pleased. " And you, what 
will you do?'' asked several among them. /* I 
hope/' he answered, ^' to remain in the con- 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. \2J 

vent as long as I can, and then to retire to 
the citidal." '^ We will not leave you/' they 
all cried, and refused to abandon him. The 
following day the Gueux barricaded the riv- 
er, both above and below the town, and made 
a proclamation, offering political and religious 
liberty, reduction of taxes, and cheap living ; 
the usual baits of revolutionists. 

The whole Franciscan community took ref- 
uge in the citadel, carrying with them what 
articles of value still remained in the convent. 
There they were joined by several of the 
most influential Catholics of Gorcum. The 
two secular priests, Nicolas Poppel and Leon- 
ard Wichel, had neglected nothing to animate 
the courage of the citizens. They had visited 
the magistrates, made the tour of the walls, 
and harangued the soldiers, but as the Gueux 
had been cunning enough to proclaim toler- 
ation for the Catholic faith, the citizens did 
not see why they should fight for what had 
not yet been attacked ; so the parish priests 
hardly received a patient hearing. 



128 The Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 



CHAPTER II. 

THE refugees had no sooner entered the 
citadel than the Gueux were secretly in- 
troduced into the town by their partisans. 
Their leader, Martin Brant, or Brancio, a 
Fleming, was possessed of considerable mili- 
tary talent. He had been a dyke-digger, and 
afterwards a pirate under William Lumay, 
Count de la Marck. His daring, coolness, and 
strength had acquired him an ascendancy 
over his coarse companions. As soon as he 
found himself master of Gorcum he called the 
inhabitants together in the great square by 
ringing the bells. He proposed that they 
should all vow eternal hatred to the Duke of 
Alva and the Spanish conquerors of the 
country, and swear allegiance to the Prince 
of Orange. Those who were ready to take 
the oath were to raise their hats, and imme- 
diately the hats of all present rose into the air 
to the loud cries of *' Long live the Gueux.'* 
Brant then galled the senate, or town-coungil 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 129 

together, to make arrangements to complete 
the success of the day. 

The citadel, in which the religious and 
Catholic inhabitants had taken refuge, was 
hardly in a state to make a long resistance. It 
was ill provisioned, and there were no arti- 
sans to make repairs, nor surgeons to tend the 
wounded. The sole hope of the refugees 
was to hold out until they could obtain suc- 
cor from elsewhere. Gaspard Turc, the 
Governor, counted upon his sons to obtain as- 
sistance and relief from Utrecht, and showed 
letters from the Governor in which he prom- 
ised this help, therefore when Brant summon- 
ed him to surrender, his answer was resolute. 
Brant laughed when he received it, and placing 
his artillery opposite the weakest point, opened 
fire. The besieged did their best to return 
fire, but the disproportion of their forces was 
evident. Brant had upwards of two hundred, 
while the Governor had no more than twenty 
able men ; the others were either unused to 
handle arms, or prevented from doing so by 
their sacred calling. So he could not long 
hinder the Gueux from setting fire to the' 
door of the first enclosure of the fortress, and 



130 The Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 

was obliged to retire to the second line of de- 
fence. Near midnight loud shouts announced 
that the Gueux had forced the second enclos- 
ure, and the little garrison had barely time to 
retire to the last enclosure, called the Blue 
Tower, on account of the color of the stone 
of which it was built. 

The Governor hoped to be able to hold out 
in this tower until the expected arrival of his 
son. It was surrounded by a fosse full of 
water. Built of blocks of stone, to the sight it 
presented an appearance of great strength, but 
when the enemy, encouraged by success, com- 
menced firing into the openings, and noth- 
ing was seen of the promised assistance, the 
soldiers began to murmur, said that the Gov- 
ernor had deceived them, and that they 
could fight no longer against such great odds. 
Some of them threw away their arms and 
others passed over to the enemy. 

The female refugees, believing that all was 
lost, now raised a clamor which their fathers 
and husbands could not appease. The Gov- 
ernor's wife and daughters clung to his knees, 
held his arms, and besought him to have pity 
u])on them. He would not listen, and called 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 1 3 1 

Father Nicolas Pik to ask his advice. Father 
Pik counselled him to wait for the daylight, 
to see if succor would not arrive. 

Cannon balls continued to follow one another 
in quick succession, and the tower trembled 
as if shaken to its foundations. The disorder 
increased in the interior, the Governor de- 
manded a parle}'. He proposed the surren- 
der of the tower on conditions accepted by 
Brant, that every one in the citadel, laics or 
ecclesiastics, should be allowed to go free and 
unharmed, and that all property within the 
tower walls was to be given to the conquer- 
ors. 

During the parley the ecclesiastics pre- 
pared for the worst, confessed one to another, 
and heard the confessions of the prisoners. 
Nicolas Poppel, the parish priest, had carried 
the most adorable Sacrament with him, and 
thus all were enabled to receive holy com- 
munion from his hands; the Gueux entered 
the tower, and the Catholics saw, with sor- 
row and deep shame, how many of the citi- 
zens, and even those they had counted among 
the best, had joined them. Brant at once or- 
dered all within the fortress to go into the 



1 3 2 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 

upper story. There the Gueux surrounded 
them, shouting, " All that you have is ours." 
** Show us your hiding places.*' ^* Open your 
purses." *'Turn out your pockets.*' And 
the}^ stripped and searched them, treating 
them, especially the Capuchins, with great 
cruelty. They could not believe they had 
no silver or gold or precious objects about 
them. 

At last they thrust all the captives into the 
kitchen, and afterwards into another room, 
where they wrote down their names. This 
was to enable two influential members of the 
town council to satisfy their vengeance upon 
some of the prisoners. And as soon as they 
had read the list they called upon Theodore 
Bommer, and took him and his son away. 
They had hated him for a long time for being 
one of the firmest and most zealous Catholics. 
They charged him with having called the 
Gueux, '' plunderers.** '' Would to God,** he 
answered, "that I was misinformed ; respect 
what I have accused you of violating and I 
will joyfully retract.'* But this was not what 
they intended. The churches of Gorcum had 
already been plundered, and some of the ban- 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcu^n. 133 

ners used for religious processions were lobe 
seen floating at the mast-heads of the ships. 
They hung Theodore a few days later, in open 
defiance of the terms of capitulation. 

The insults inflicted on the captives in the 
citadel may easily be imagined. The peo- 
ple came in crowds to the prison door to gaze 
upon them. '* We have them at last," they 
cried. *' These shaven pates, supporters of 
the papacy and Spanish despotism." The 
captives did not answer. Gaspard Turc, the 
Governor of the Citadel, was put into chains 
for venturing to call the terms of capitulation 
to Brant's mind, and not allowed to see his fam- 
ily again. A soldier, having found a paten 
among the holy vessels, threw it w^ith all his 
might at the face of Father Nicolas, cutting 
his mouth, but the Father seemed hardly to 
notice it, rejoicing to suffer persecution for 
Christ's sake. Near him Nicaise and Willald, 
two Capuchin fathers, meditated as if in the 
peaceable silence of their monastery cells. 
Nicolas Poppel, the parish priest, was full of 
grief for the cowardice and apostasy of so 
many of his flock, while Father Leonard 
Wichel seemed not to realize the danger he 



134 Tf^^ Holy Martyrs of Gorcu^n, 

and his companions were in. So often in the 
course of his long ministry had he mercifully 
saved heretics from punishment, that it ap- 
peared impossible that he should receive any- 
thing but kindness from them in return. 
There was a certain Anabaptist whom he 
had snatched from death and reconciled to 
the Church, and to him he appealed. The 
man talked of his gratitude, but whether he 
dared not compromise himself, or whether 
his return to Catholicity had only been feigned, 
he hurried away, and the kind-hearted priest 
saw him no more. 




The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 135 



CHAPTER III. 

AFTER a day passed in alternate hope and 
fear, the names of the prisoners were read 
out, and all except the priests and religious 
were set at liberty ; not, however, without 
having paid large ransoms. The priests and 
religious were then thrown into prison. One 
old secular priest, Godfrey van Duynen, had 
permission to depart, but when he got as far 
as the drawbridge one of the inhabitants 
asked the soldiers where they were taking 
him. *' He is allowed to go because he is a 
fool,*' answered the soldiers. ** Fool," said the 
citizen, ** he has wits enough to make his God 
in the Mass, and enough head to be hung." 
The soldiers laughed, and the old man was 
led back to prison. A young nephew of 
Father Pik escaped and Father Pik could 
easily have escaped if he had wished to do so. 
One of his sisters had a son who was on good 
terms with the Gueux, among whom he had 
formerly served, for which he had been con- 



136 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

demned to death by the Count of Bossut, the 
King of Spain's Commander at Rotterdam. 
Father Pik journeyed to that town, and ob- 
tained pardon. The young man had never 
forgotten it, and was very grateful to his 
uncle for having saved his life. He tried to 
persuade his uncle to leave the prison with 
him, but Father Fik firmly refused to be set 
free unless his Brothers in religion were 
liberated at the same time. 

Many of the prisoners, who had eaten noth- 
ing for fully twenty-four hours, fainted from 
sheer weakness. It was Friday, and to mock at 
their religion the Protestant soldiers set meat 
before them for supper. We need not add that 
it was left untouched. The guard w^as com- 
posed of soldiers who had formerly been 
pirates. They laid their hands on all the pro- 
visions in the castle, and when filled with 
good cheer and wine their hatred for the 
sacred character of their prisoners knew no 
bounds. They rose from table furious with 
drink, and asked them where they would be 
cut first ; on the nose, ears, hands, or feet ? 
They had with them two ladders and ropes, 
which made the prisoners fear they were 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorctcm, 137 

about to be hung, when suddenly a sentinel 
entered, saying that the Governor's son, 
William Turc, who had been expected to re- 
lieve the citadel, had arrived, and that the 
Spaniards had already entered the town. 
The soldiers rushed to the walls, but it was 
a false alarm, and they soon returned to tor- 
ture their prisoners. '' All the better," they 
said ; ** we are going to amuse ourselves to- 
night with black and gray robes ; it would real- 
ly be a pity if the red coats should come to 
trouble us at so agreeable a pastime.'* " But," 
added one of them, '' we must not work for 
nothing; let us make them come in turns to 
see the state of their purses." The parish 
priest, Leonard Wichel, was the first to be 
examined : he had still some money left and 
gave it to them at once. After him Godfrey 
van Duynen was called upon. ^^ Show us your 
treasures," cried the soldiers. *' I have none," 
answered the priest. /'Possible!" said the 
soldiers ; " you are half fool ; it is not to you 
that treasures would be given, but rather to 
this old confessor of nuns," by which they 
meant Father Thierry Embden, director of the 
Sisters of St. Agnes. They ordered him to 



1 38 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 

show them the church treasures. They held 
a loaded pistol to his heart, but upon his 
earnest and reiterated declarations that he 
knew nothing of such treasures, they passed 
on to Father Nicolas Poppel, the younger of 
the parish priests of Gorcum. They thought 
the priests had carried immense riches into 
the citadel, the evening before ; but when 
Father Nicolas Poppel denied having done 
so, their Protestant bigotry burst forth again. 
*' At least," so they blasphemed, '* give us the 
God which you made in the Mass. You who 
have so often railed against us in the pulpit, 
what do you think now, in the face of this 
pistol?" '*! believe all which the Catholic 
Church believes and teaches," was his coura- 
geous answer, *' and in particular I believe in 
the real presence of my God in the sacra- 
mental species. If that is any reason why I 
should die, kill me. I should be happy to die 
at the end of the confession of faith you 
desire from me," and he threw himself on his 
knees, crying out : " Into Thy hands, O Lord, 
I commend my spirit.'' But his time had not 
yet come ; God wished to add yet more to his 
merits by letting him pass through still great- 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 139 

er trials. A soldier snatched the cord from 
one of the Capuchin's habit, and twisted it 
several times round PoppeFs neck. The}^ 
fastened one end of the cord to the prison 
door, and pulling the other, raised him vio- 
lently from the ground and let him fall again 
several times, renewing each time their ques- 
tion about the treasures. Not being able to 
speak he answered by gestures, until at last 
they left him half dead. The cord had cut a 
deep wound around his neck, which remained 
distinctly visible until his death. 

The Capuchin Fathers were the next to be 
examined. They answered that they had no 
riches, as the rule of St. Francis forbade them 
to possess anything as their own. " Bah ! '' 
said the soldiers ; *' tell that to others ; you 
pretend to be poor in order that fools should 
give you money. Your convent must have a 
very fine money box, without counting the 
hoards which each of you in particular pos- 
sess.'' And thinking that the young religious 
would be most likely to betray the supposed 
treasures, they began to ill-treat them in every 
possible way. One of them, overcome by 
pain, declared with tears in his eyes that he 



140 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

knew nothing of any treasures, but that it was 
the Father Guardian who had care of the 
goods of the community. ^^ And where is he, 
the guardian of these traitors?" they cried. 
At first they laid hands on Father Jerome de 
Werden, Vice Guardian, but the Guardian 
would not allow any one to wrest the crown 
of martyrdom from his brow, and declared 
his name and office. 

They set at him at once, and beating him, 
tossed him backwards and forwards, one from 
another, like a ball, until their fury having 
spent itself, they required him to give up the 
convent treasures. Father Nicholas Pik calm- 
ly answered : '' My treasures are the chalices 
and holy vessels of the Church, which I 
brought here ; I know that you have already 
got them ; would that they were sufficient for 
you, because I have no other." '* And what 
has become of the money you got by begging, 
and the alms of the pious people ?" '^ Nothing 
remains of those alms," said the Guardian. 
*^ You lie, you impudent monk." ^' I tell the 
truth," said the Father, ** and as I have noth- 
ing more to add, ask me not to say anything 
else ;" and neither blows nor promises could 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 1 4 1 

induce him to say another word. Then they 
pulled his cord from his waist, and twisted it 
round his neck, just as they had done to 
Father Nicholas Poppel, but with still great- 
er cruelty. They hung the holy martyr on 
the door, drew him up and let him down again, 
until the cord wore out, and his body fell and 
remained seemingly lifeless on the ground. 
The soldiers, astonished to see him dead so 
soon, raised his body and propped it against 
the wall. Then, whether to insult the body or 
to satisfy themselves that he was really dead, 
they applied burning torches to his mouth 
and ears, thrust them into his nostrils and 
mouth, and scorched his tongue and palate. 
Believing, at last, that he was dead, they 
kicked his burnt and bruised body, saying : 
'^ Who will demand an account from us?'' — ■ 
and went away, leaving the body for dead 
upon the ground. When the religious crowd- 
ed around him, looking at his wounds, they 
were surprised to hear a sigh escape from 
his lips. They raised him, rubbed him, and 
washed his bleeding neck and burnt face. 
At last he spoke : '* I hoped that my good 
Master would have received me into his 
bosom. But his holy will be done !" 



J 42 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

The next morning the soldiers returned 
with a hatchet, intending to cut his body in 
pieces, according to the custom of the Low 
Countries with the bodies of traitors. Find- 
ing he had come to himself, " Me does not 
want to die/* they said. ** This shaven pate ' 
his soul is riven in his stomach ; we know how 
to bring it out ; *' and they kicked him, beat 
him with their fists, rolled him upon the 
ground, taking care, how^ever, not to endan- 
ger his life again. 

Such was the kind of treatment to which 
all the holy martyrs were subjected for ten 
days. When one band of soldiers was satisfied 
with torturing them, another came; and when 
any citizens visited the citadel, they and the 
soldiers put their brains together to find 
some new torture. One of them forced the 
martyrs to puff out their cheeks as if they 
were blowing a horn, and then gave them 
furious blows on the cheeks, so that the blood 
spurted out of their mouths, noses, and ears. 
Only two religious, w^ho were hidden in an em- 
brasure of a loophole, escaped this inhuman 
amusement. Another visitor, a Frenchman, 
cut one of the Capuchins in the face with a 



The Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 143 

knife because he thought to appease his 
anger by speaking French to him. 

At other times the soldiers amused them- 
selves by kneeling before the most venerable 
priests, making mock confessions, whispering 
in their ears all kinds of nonsense and abom- 
inations. " What do you say to my confes- 
sion ?** asked one of them to Father Willald. 
** Will you give me absolution ?" *' Alas ! no, 
my brother/' answered the monk; "you are 
not sorry for your sins, but I will pray for 
you.'* " Pray for me, you proud monk !'' and 
instead of being disarmed by such chanty he 
dealt him a shower of blows. The good re- 
ligious, at each blow which he received, con- 
tented himself with answering, ** Deo Gra- 
tias," ''Thanks be to God." 




144 I^^^^ Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 



CHAPTER IV. 

IT was during these ten da37S that the Do- 
minican, Father John, was brought priso- 
ner into the citadel. He belonged to the 
monastery of Cologne, in Germany, but had 
been appointed parish-priest of Hornaer, in 
Holland. 

Many of his parishioners and religious were 
imprisoned by the Gueux ; he visited them to 
administer the Sacraments, and was baptiz- 
ing a child when he was taken prisoner. He 
was led to Gorcum and imprisoned with 
those who were suffering for their faith. 

By this time the sad fate of those shut up 
in the citadel began to move the hearts of 
their fellow citizens. It was Brant's policy to 
tell as little as possible about them. He said 
they were well lodged, well fed, and treated 
well. Father Pik asked, through a friend who 
visited him, to have a surgeon to tend to the 
prisoners' wounds, but Brant pretended not 
to see what need there was of one. Yet he 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 145 

dared not refuse. The surgeon, who was 
brother-in-law to Father Pik, when admitted, 
did all he could to persuade the Father to al- 
low him to pay a ransom, but could not weaken 
the resolution he had taken that he would be 
liberated only on condition that all his fellow- 
sufferers would be allowed to go with him. 

The surgeon's account of what he had seen, 
together with that of the schoolmaster, and 
some of the prisoners who were allowed their 
liberty, the influence of powerful friends, the 
large ransom which would be paid, the grief 
of the relations of several of the martyrs, all 
contributed to excite pity for them among the 
citizens. Petitions poured in from all sides. 
A large sum was subscribed for the release of 
Father JSTicholas Poppel, but was appropri- 
ated by the man who had collected it. 

Their case was mooted in the town coun- 
cil, and one senator had daring enough to 
call upon Brant to remember the terms on 
which the Governor had capitulated. Com- 
pletely surprised, Brant threw the blame on 
his superiors, and said he w^as waiting for 
orders from them. All these things made the 
Gueux fear that their prey would escape, 



146 The Holy Mai^tyrs of Gorcum. 

and they resolved to hurry on the execution. 
They demanded instructions from the fero- 
cious Count de la Marck, called the Count of 
Lumay ; a man who had never been known to 
give quarter to any Catholic. He was at La 
Brille, where he was organizing a maritime 
insurrection. The Count answered by an 
order to send all detained in the citadel to 
him, and to be more sure of the rigid execu- 
tion of his will, he charged an apostate priest, 
John Omal, formerly Canon Regular of the 
Cathedral of Liege, to conduct them to him. 
When that unhappy man arrived, Brant pre- 
tended not to dare to make any objection. 

The holy martyrs were suddenly awakened 
in the middle of the night of the fifth of July, 
stripped almost naked, and taken on aboard a 
large ship. The night was cold. Willald, 
being an old man, and having no cloth- 
ing but a thin shirt, asked in vain for his 
cassock or cloak to protect him from the 
cold. He received blows and injuries in re- 
sponse to his request ; but afterwards some 
one took pity on his gray hairs and lent him 
a cloak. On boarding the ship Father Leon- 
ard Wichel recognized one of his parishioners 



The Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 147 

at the helm, and said to him : *' Roche, is it 
you who are thus leading us to death ?" The 
sailor, hanging down his head, answered, 
'' Alas I Father, I am not master." 

The old priest turned away, and standing 
on the deck as the ship slowly sailed down 
the Meuse, saw for the last time, through the 
tears which fell from his eyes, his beloved 
town of Gorcum, the scene of his pastoral 
labors, whose spiritual welfare had been the 
sole thought of his heart and life. 

Leaving Gorcum at one o'clock, the vessel 
arrived at Dordrecht about nine in the morn- 
ing. It was Sunday. The apostate priest 
could not pass the town without landing to 
exhibit his captives. The ship was moored to 
the quay, and the people were invited on 
board. The crowd being very great, the 
soldiers covered the deck with a large sail, 
making a tent of it, into which all who wished 
were admitted on payment of a small sum. We 
will not attempt to describe the insults which 
the martyrs had to undergo; like Saint Paul 
they became '' a spectacle to men and angels.'' 

The ship set sail again in the afternoon. 
The prisoners had not taken any food since 



148 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

starting. A morsel of bread was given them 
in the evening. After another night in the 
open air they landed at the town of LaBrille, 
on the morning of July the seventh. The 
Count de la Marck was in bed when he was 
told of their arrival. He immediately arose, 
mounted his horse, and hastened to the shore. 
He ordered them to be landed, made them 
touch the ground with their heads, and kneel 
before him. Then, he said, '* Arise!" and 
placed them in a line two a-breast, as if m 
solemn procession, and forced them to make 
the round of the gallows three times, walking 
backwards. An executioner, one of the 
Count's followers, set up a ladder against the 
gallows, as if he wished to hang them there 
and then. *' This is the end of your pilgrim- 
age," he cried out. ** Sing, then, pious pil- 
gri-ms! w^e are going to see 3'Ou mount to 
heaven." But the Count did not wish to de- 
prive his boon companions of the pleasure they 
would find in torturing inoffensive monks and 
priests, therefore, upon a signal from him, the 
procession was turned towards LaBrille. The 
executioner went at the head, sacrilegiously 
holding a cross in his hands, Peter D'Assche 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 149 

and Cornelius de Wyck, lay brothers of the 
Capuchin Order, walked first. Two soldiers 
rode on horseback at each side, carrying 
branches of trees, which they used as whips 
to scourge the holy martyrs. The Count 
shouted, '^ Sing ! lecherous monks, sing ! so 
that we may know whether you are afraid or 
not.*' The captives obeyed ; and it was 
with strong and firm voices they chanted first 
the ^^ Salve Regina,*' '* Hail, Holy Queen,'* 
and afterwards several canticles in honor of 
the Blessed Virgin, Queen of Martyrs. They 
were singing the " Te Deum " when they en- 
tered La Brille. The whole town was on 
foot to receive them ; but with what a recep- 
tion ! They advanced slowly between two 
compact walls of human beings. Yet, it was 
not a very amusing sight : Men, pale, haggard, 
nearly naked, already more or lest disfigured 
by the traces of brutal violence, one of them 
sixty years of age, another seventy, and a third 
almost eighty, were being led to death. The 
rabble pelted them with stones, threw dirty 
water in their faces, saying, ** Asperges me 
Domine, etc." The women, usually so easily 
moved to pity, were worse than the men* 



1 50 The Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 

Father Jerome de Werden, who had travelled 
in the Holy Land and had undergone captiv- 
ity among the infidels, declared that he had 
never met with such treatment even at the 
hands of Turks. 



5P 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcu7n. 1 5 1 



CHAPTER V. 

THE martyrs were ordered to halt before a 
gibbet in the principal square of the town. 
The soldiers forced them to walk round it 
thrice, and afterwards to kneel and sing the 
Litany of the Saints. When they came to the 
end of the petitions, there was a dead silence. 
** Oremus ! Oremus," cried the people. " Let 
some one sing the Oremus, because it will 
not be soon that w^ shall be able to hear it 
again in this country.'' Then Father Godfrey 
van Duynen, being the oldest priest, sang in 
a loud clear voice the prayers, which in the 
midst of dead silence could be heard all over 
the town; his fellow martyrs answered 
" Amen." At length they were led to prison, 
where they met some unexpected com- 
panions, two priests who had been there some 
time, and two others were brought in about 
an hour afterwards. They were the parish 
priests of Maesdam and Heinort, villages in 
the immediate neighborhood. And two re- 



152 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

ligious of the Order of Premontr^, Adrian 
Becan and James Lacop, parish priest and 
curate of Munster, where they had been sent 
from the celebrated Abbey of Middlebourgh 
in Zealand. They had been taken prisoners 
the night before and led before the Count de 
la Marck in company with James Lacop's 
father. The Count asked the old man of 
what country he w^as. He replied in French 
that he was from Flanders. **Very good/' 
said the Count. *' If you persuade your son 
to give up his papism, both of you may go 
free." But the priest declared he w^ould 
never accept life on such terms. ** Then/^ said 
Lumay, **you will die." ^' I shall not die, but 
live," answered the priest. *' What," said the 
Count, 'Mo you not know that I have the 
power to put you to death ?" *' You may kill 
my body," said the priest, *' but my soul is 
immortal ; it will escape you." Angered by 
his boldness, the Count sent the two priests to 
prison, but gave the old man his liberty. 

The prison of La Brille was formed of three 
rooms, one above the other, so arranged that 
the lowest, that in which the martyrs was 
imprisoned, was uninhabitable. No soil 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 153 

pipes had been placed from the upper rooms, 
and all the refuse fell into the lower prison. 

It was in total darkness. No one could be 
recognized except by his voice. The stench 
was insupportable. Some food was given 
them at three in the afternoon. They were 
taken to the Town Hall in the evening, and 
in presence of the Count interrogated on their 
faith. The firmness with which they answered 
did not draw down upon them any new out- 
rage, except when one of the Count's soldiers, 
irritated by Father Leonard's responses, hit 
him with the back of a hatchet. " Strike 
again/' said the priest. "Strike again ; I am 
in your power, but it will not be for long." 

Another soldier threw a little hammer, 
which hit the priest on the forehead, and 
caused the blood to flow. 

On their return to prison they were lodged 
in the higher room, which was neither so 
damp nor so unhealthy as that below. 

Bread and water were given them for sup- 
per. 

After this first conference on religion the 
Calvinists had formed the hope of staggering 
the faith of some of the prisoners, especially 



154 ^^^ Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 

of the parish priest of Maesdam, as well as 
Brother Henry, a young Capuchin, and one of 
the canons of Gorcum ; and to carry out 
their evil designs, furnished them comfortable 
quarters for the night, in the house of the 
chief of the police. Unhappily, their designs 
succeeded. 

The following day, proud of this first tri- 
umph, they essayed a more general victory. 
A young Capuchin, when examined, had an- 
swered that he believed exactly what the 
Father Guardian believed. The heretics 
thought that if they could seduce the older 
priests, all the others would follow. They 
therefore chose seven of those they thought 
the most learned among them, and caused them 
to appear before the town council in chains. 
Those they thus honored were the two Pre- 
monstratensians, the Guardian and the Vice 
Guardian of the Capuchins, the two parish 
priests of Gorcum, and Father Godfrey de 
Merville, a Capuchin. This new examination 
had been undertaken at the instigation of the 
two brothers-in-law of Father Nicholas Pik, 
who had come to La Brille to obtain his de- 
liverance : they were more concerned for the 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 155 

safety of his body than for his eternal salva- 
tion. 

This conference was presided over by the 
Count, and directed by two ministers, assisted 
by a clerk, who took notes of all that happened. 
One of the ministers was an ex-sailor of Gor- 
cum, called Corneille ; an inveterate drinker. 
He knew no Latin, and when an answer embar- 
rassed him, he turned to the magistrates and 
said, " Hang them ! hang them ! and all will 
be finished.*' 

The other, who was more learned and very 
glib with Bible quotations, was called An- 
drew. He was formerly the Catholic parish 
priest of St. Catherine in La Brille. Seeing 
the Gueux masters of his parish he changed 
politics and religion atone and the same time. 

They began by asking the confessors if 
they believed in the authority of the Roman 
Pontiff, and why they did so. Father Leon- 
ard Wichel answered that he considered it 
the very foundation of Christian Unity ; and 
added that he could not understand how a 
Protestant could find fault with any one be- 
lieving it, because the fundamental idea of 
Protestantism is that each one has a right to 



r 56 The Holy Martyrs of G or cum. 

find in his Bible that which the Holy Ghost 
inspires him to find there ; but if the Holy 
Ghost inspires one to find the Primacy of the 
Saint Peter and his successors in the Bible, 
by what right could any consistent and honest 
Protestant find fault with him for doing so ? 
Would they refuse a Catholic a right which 
according to Protestant principles belongs to 
all ? This was hitting the nail on the head. 
A veritable bomb-shell in the Protestant 
camp. How could they answer? If they 
denied a Catholic this right they could be no 
longer consistent Protestants. If they allowed 
it, Catholic doctrines would be equally true 
w^ith their own, a manifest absurdity. So one 
of them did what all Protestants do when 
pinned to the wall by some unanswerable 
Catholic argument : — he turned the question 
aside, and said, *' Since you appear disposed 
to reason according to the Holy Scripture, let 
us argue according to the Bible.** 

The discussion was accepted ; it did no 
honor to the Protestants, and ended abruptly 
by the forcible expulsion of the Catholic theo- 
logians from the hall. But before sending 
them away the Count wished to speak to 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 157 

James Lacop, the Premonstratensian, whose 
mild countenance and graceful elocution had 
made a strong impression upon his ferocious 
heart. To seduce him he first made flatter- 
ing promises, and then used menaces ; but 
without shaking his constancy and belief in 
the Catholic faith. In the meantime a mes- 
senger was announced, bearing letters to the 
Count from Marin Brant, the town council of 
Gorcum, and the Prince of Orange. Marin 
Brant*s letter was a simple passport, written 
by his own hand, in which he assumed the 
title of Lord, which raised the Count's anger. 
The Council of Gorcum, in its letter, reminded 
the Count of the promise made to all the 
prisoners when they capitulated, that their 
lives should not be touched ; they bore wit- 
ness to the good reputation of all the prisoners, 
certifying that they had never done any- 
thing but good to their fellow-citizens, and 
ended by interceding in their behalf. The 
messenger was also charged to say that they 
were disposed to give a ransom for them, and 
that Father WicheFs sister would herself pay 
a large sum for his release. The letter of the 
Prince of Orange was more decisive ; he had 



1 58 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

written at the request of the town council of 
Gorcum. But unhappily it had just the con- 
trary eflFect of what he intended. The Count 
was very indignant when he read it. He said 
that William of Orange was marvellously 
mistaken if he supposed that the Count de 
la Marck had shaken off the yoke of the King 
of Spain for the pleasure of bending his head 
to an equal. He renewed his oath to kill all 
priests who fell into his hands, as a revenge 
for the death of the Counts of Hoorne and 
Egmont. 




The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum, 159 



CHAPTER VI. 

FATHER Nicolas Pik^s two brothers, who 
had also come to La Brille, obtained by 
perseverance the permission to liberate him, 
with no obligation on his part of renouncing the 
faith. To their great astonishment he refused, 
and begged them not to speak to him again of 
abandoning his spiritual children. They ob- 
tained a promise from the Calvinist ministers 
and the principal Gueux that all should be set 
at liberty, if they would only renounce the 
Pope, having full liberty to believe all the other 
doctrines of the Catholic faith. They were 
also authorized to invite their brother to sup 
with them in town that evening. He accepted 
their invitation, but steadily resisted all their 
loving persuasions. Their affection touched 
his tender heart ; he thanked them, but reso- 
lutely declined all they proposed. They then 
betook themselves to arguments, in which 
they were soon silenced. Then they pre- 
tended to lay aside all discussions for the 



1 60 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

moment, and appeared to think of nothing 
but eating and drinking, in the hope that 
good cheer would soften his constancy. 
Father Nicolas, enfeebled by long fasting, 
did not refuse to join them in innocent pleas- 
ure. There was nothing sad about him ; no 
one would have thought he had undergone 
so much sufifering, or that he was in immi- 
nent danger of death ; but as soon as his 
brothers returned to their arguments he 
begged them once and for all to cease : 
'* Think 3^ou that by the cowardice you 
recommend to me I would be saved. No ! I 
should die a few years later on ; in six, or ten, 
or perhaps even in thirty years, only to fall in- 
to hell. Let me rather goto heaven at once. 
Death does not frighten me.** Then they 
began to reproach him, but Father Nicolas, 
to show them how utterly useless it was, 
stretched himself out on a bench, and soon 
fell into a deep sleep. 

His brothers looked at him in silence, fear- 
ing to disturb his slumbers. In their hearts 
they could not but feel proud of him, so cour- 
ageous, so firm in the faith, so ready to die. 

The Count had abandoned himself th^t 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 1 6 1 

night to his usual excesses. Full of wine he 
read the letter of the Prince of Orange again, 
and noticed that Marin Brant had only sent 
him a copy, keeping the original. This want 
of respect put the finishing stroke to his fury. 
'^ He also," he cried, '' thinks himself superior 
to me. He ! Marin Brant ! who only yester- 
day handled the pick and the shovel instead 
of the sword. Every one pretends to com- 
mand me, and those who do not dare to send 
me their orders send them by others. By all 
the devils of the Antichrist of Rome we shall 
see!" 

He rose from table, called the executioner, 
and ordered the prisoners to be hanged. 
Then speaking to the apostate priest, John 
Omal, he charged him to see that his orders 
were strictly carried out. '' Yoxx may trust 
me," Omal answered. Father Nicolas was 
awakened, and taken to the other martyrs, 
who were tied together by their arms, in ten 
couples. Soldiers surrounded them, some on 
foot, others on horseback, and a crowd of 
people had assembled, although it was in the 
middle of the night. 

It was the month of July, 1572. At one 



1 62 The Holy Martyrs of Go7xum. 

o'clock in the morning they were taken out 
of prison and led to the monastery of St. 
Elizabeth, at Ruggennse. It had been inhab- 
ited not long before by the Canons Regular 
of Saint Augustine, but had been ransacked 
and half destroyed by the Gueux. There was 
a large granary in the basement, which was 
to be the place of their martyrdom. A stout 
beam ran from one wall to the other, and 
another projected part of the distance across, 
and upon these two beams they were to be 
hanged. 

They were stripped of all their clothes, 
which caused them much shame, until they 
remembered that their Divine Lord and Mas- 
ter had hung naked on the cross, and rejoiced 
to resemble him so closely. The Father 
Guardian mounted the ladder first, after hav- 
ing embraced his companions. " I show you,'* 
he said, *' the ladder to heaven. Follow me 
like valiant soldiers of Jesus Christ, that hav- 
ing fought together, none may be wanting at 
the eternal triumph which awaits us on high,'' 
and he ceased not to exhort them to courage 
until his breath failed. 

He was in the thirty-eighth year of his age. 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 1 63 

As soon as he was dead, Father Jerome de 
Werden, the Vice-Guardian, Nicaise Johnson, 
and the two parish priests of Gorcum, Leon- 
ard VVichel and Nicolas Poppel, offered to 
take his place. And indeed their encourage- 
ment was sorely needed. There was a Cal- 
vinist minister present, who did his best to 
seduce the laymen and young religious, offer- 
ing them life and worldly advantages if they 
would give up their faith. Nicaise Johnson, 
who knew how simple they were, and that 
many of them were incapable of answering his 
heretical sophisms, told them to avoid discus- 
sion and simply to profess their faith. '* You 
lose 3-our time," he said to the minister; 
" they will not listen to you ; we are all Catho- 
lics, even unto death.'' 

Father Jerome de Werden was the second 
to be hanged. He went up the steps of the 
ladder, invoking the Holy Virgin and Saints. 
The minister put himself right before him on 
the other side of the ladder, and reproached 
him for his pretended idolatry. Father Je- 
rome, to show his indignation at his blas- 
phemies, and his utter contempt for the 
wretch, kicked him on the stomach through 



164 The Holy Ma^^tyrs of Gorcum. 

the rounds of the ladder, which knocked him 
backwards. 

One of the Capuchins, a novice called 
Henry, the youngest of the number, inspired 
by the hope of softening the executioner's 
heart, made a -sign that he accepted the min- 
ister's conditions. He was at once unbound 
and taken aside. "Oh! misfortune, worse 
than all tortures," cried Father Jerome from 
the ladder. '' Minister of Satan, you will 
have to answer before God for this youth's 
loss." 

The Gueux stopped his mouth with their 
pikes. Then, as the unhappy youth, to whom 
God afterwards gave the grace of conversion, 
related, the soldiers saw a cross on Father 
Jerome's breast and right arm, which he had 
tattooed during his journey to the Holy Land, 
and they set to work to efface it with the 
points of their swords. The courageous 
priest, hanging on the beam, prayed unceas- 
ingly, and encouraged his brothers as long as 
his failing breath allowed him. So also did 
Nicaise Johnson, and Nicolas Poppel, who 
died next. After them came a Capuchin 
called William, who just as he was about to 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 165 

give his life for God, cried out in French 
that he wished to live, that he renounced the 
Pope, and begged the soldiers to save him. 
They cut him down, gave him a soldier's tunic 
and casquet, and let him go. 

The miserable coward came to a bad end. 
Enrolled among the soldiers of the Gueux, 
abandoned by God, he quickly fell into all 
kinds of excesses, and was hanged only two 
months afterwards, not for a holy cause, but 
for a crime of theft. 

There were also a few among the young 
brothers, who, frightened at death, implored 
the pity of the executioner ; but as they 
would not renounce their faith were not lib- 
erated. 

Godfrey Merville, before dying, repeated 
the words of Jesus Christ on the cross. " For- 
give them, Lord, for they know not what they 
do." Leonard VVichel, mounting the ladder, 
said the only thing which caused him grief 
was the thought of his aged mother; but 
Godfrey van Duynen cried out to him, 
** Courage Master Leonard ! to-day we shall 
be companions in heaven at the feast of the 
Lamb." He was the last to be handed, when 



1 66 The Holy Afarlyrs of Gorcum. 

the soldiers hesitated to take the ladder away 
from under his feet, saying : '^ Let us, at least, 
spare this one, he is innocent." '^ No ! no ! " 
he said ; ** send me to my brothers ; I see the 
heavens opened. If I have offended or scan- 
dalized any one, I ask his pardon/* 




The Holy Martyrs of Goi'cum. 167 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE agony of the victims was long and 
painful. The soldiers acquitted them- 
selves of their task with great cruelty. One 
martyr was hanged by his chm, the rope 
passed through another's mouth, and a third 
was strangled with difficulty, the rope being 
so loosely fastened. 

Father Nicaise Johnson did not die until 
after the sun had risen next morning. 

The soldiers treated the bodies with shame- 
ful barbarity. They spent from two to four 
o'clock in insulting and mutilating them, 
*'Monks! monks!" they cried. *' Hams of 
parish priests; these are dainty morsels, which 
one does not get every day.'' And they cut 
a nose from one, and an ear or a foot from an- 
other. They put them in their casquets for 
cockades, or hung them on their pikes, and 
went to promenade in the town, throwing 
those saintly relics in the faces of Catholics. 
Some, believing that the fat of dead criminals 



J 68 The Holy Martyrs of Gorcum. 

was a remedy against certain maladies, opened 
and searched the entrails to find it. They 
hung the body of Father Jerome de Werden 
on a ladder, cut it up like butcher's meat, and 
sold the fat they found to dealers in salves. 
The entrails, labelled, were publicly sold in 
the Gorcum market. The granary was filled 
the whole day with crowds of people, the 
soldiers exacting an entrance fee. 

In the evening a Catholic from Gorcum paid 
a large sum to be allowed to bury the remains 
of the holy bodies ; — but going early next 
morning he found that the magistrates, 
ashamed, no doubt, of such disgraceful barbar- 
ities, had ordered the soldiers to bury them. 
They had dug two ditches, of unequal length, 
in which they had heaped up the bodies of 
the fifteen martyrs, who had been hanged on 
the long beam, and the other four they buried 
in a separate grave. 

The Gorcum Martyrs were beatified by 
Pope Clement loth, at Rome, November 
24th, 1675. Two centuries later Pius IX. de- 
clared them canonized, June 29, 1867. 

At the beginning of the eighteenth century 
a little sweet-smelling white flower sprang up 



The Holy Martyrs of Gorcuni. 169 

from the ground which had been watered 
with the blood of the Martyrs at La Brille. It 
grew rapidly, and was of so unusual a form, 
that it could not be classed with an}'- known 
species of flower, as was attested by the most 
learned botanists of Holland. Hearing of 
this marvellous event, thousands flocked to 
the tomb of the martyrs, to gaze upon this 
rare testimony of their sanctity. For a long 
time there was a continual succession of pil- 
grims, and all of them took a sprig of the 
plant away ; yet it never seemed to grow 
less. Among the pilgrims was Adrien An- 
tony, parish priest of St. Gertrude of 
Utrecht, who took a little branch away with 
him. He put it in a small box, and looked at 
the flowers from time to time, always finding 
them as fresh as if only just gathered. Once 
he allowed eight or nine months to pass with- 
out looking at them, and what was his aston- 
ishment, when he opened the box in the pres- 
ence of several friends, to find them multiplied, 
and when he counted them they were found 
to be nineteen, the exact number of the mar- 
tyrs. This miracle was duly proved at the 
time it happened. 



1 70 The Holy Martyrs of Goixwn, 

There were in all eleven Capuchins, two 
Premonstratensians, one Dominican, one Reg- 
ular Canon of Saint Augustine, and four sec- 
ular priests. Their names were St. Nicolas 
Pik, Guardian ; St. Jerome de Werder, Vice 
Guardian ; St. Thierry Embden, St. Nicaise 
Johnson, St. Willald, St. Godfrey of Merville, 
St. Antony of Werden, St. Antony of Hor- 
naer, St. Francis of Roze, all Capuchin priests ; 
St. Peter of Assche, St. Cornelius of Wyck, 
Capuchin lay brothers ; St. Leonard Wichel, 
St. Nicolas Poppel, St. Andrew Walter, and 
St. Godfrey van Duynen, secular priests ; St. 
John of Oosterwyck, Canon Regular of St. 
Augustine; St. Andrian Becan, and St. James 
Lacop, Premonstratensians, and St. John of 
Cologne, Dominican. God's justice overtook 
the Count de la Marck. When the war was 
over he retired into the country near Liege, 
where he was bitten by one of his own dogs 
and died a miserable death, ra\ ing mad. 

Prayer, 

Ant. In the might of Thine arm ! scattering 
the proud, O Lord ! Thou hast regarded 
the humility of Thy servants: and be- 



The Holy Mai4yrs of Gorcum. 1 7 1 

hold! all generations call them Blessed. 

V. Pray for us, Blessed John and thy com- 
panions, 

R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God ! Who didst crown with the laurel 
of immortality the glorious strife for the 
faith of Thy blessed Martyrs, John and hi's 
companions, mercifully grant that, fighting 
here on earth, we may likewise deserve, 
through their merits, and after their example, 
to be crowned with them in heaven. Through 
Christ our Lord. Amen. 




BLESSED PETER GONZALEZ. 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 175 



BLESSED PETER GONZALEZ. 

April 14/^. 

BLESSED Peter Gonzalez was born in the 
year 1 190, at Astorga, in Spain. His par- 
ents, who were rich and noble, gave him an edu- 
cation suited to his rank. Although they 
intended him, from his youth, for the service 
of God, they do not seem to have taken any 
pains to instil into his mind piety, or a right 
idea of the excellence and responsibility of 
the ecclesiastical state to which they destined 
him. When he had come to a sufficient age, 
they confided his education to the care of his 
uncle, the Bishop of Astorga, to whom they 
looked for preferment for their son. Blessed 
Peter was naturally gifted with great abilities, 
and profited much by the lessons of the mas- 
ters who had charge of his education, and 
being a handsome youth, of very winning 
manners and easy address, soon gained his 
uncle's heart. When he had finished his stud- 



1 76 Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 

ies the Bishop appointed him Canon, and 
soon afterwards obtained him the Deanery of 
the Cathedral. 

Peter gladly accepted these offices, looking 
upon them, however, merely as a means of in- 
creasing his already ample income. He chose 
the feast of Christmas to take formal possession 
of the Deanery, and mounted on a superb 
Spanish genet, dressed in rich but unclerical 
garments, set out for the Cathedral, attended 
by a numerous suite of attendants, just at the 
time when the streets were crowded with 
people on their way to hear Mass. All turned 
to look upon the gay and thoughtless youth, 
who had embraced the ecclesiastical state only 
to lead a life of self-indulgence. Many, no 
doubt, were scandalized, and contrasted him 
with the true servants of God ; but God in 
his mercy and wonderful wisdom chose this 
occasion for his conversion, and on that day, 
when all pious souls were contemplating the 
child Jesus newly born upon earth, caused 
Peter to be born again to a new life of grace. 
As he rode through the crowded streets he 
spurred his horse, making it prance from side 
to side^ to attract admiration, when suddenly 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 177 

he was thrown to the ground, falling upon a 
heap of dirt, which had been scraped up on 
the side of the street. The gay Spaniards, 
who had admired the horse and its rider but a 
few minutes before, now laughed heartily at 
his mishap. Terribly mortified, he rose quick- 
ly ; but he was in a horrible plight, his face 
and hands covered with mud, his fine clothes 
completely spoiled ; he knew not how to con- 
ceal his shame. Peals of laughter greeted him 
anew, till full of chagrin, he cried out, '^ Since 
the world laughs at me, henceforth I will 
laugh at the world;'' and he kept his resolution. 
The grace of God had entered into his heart ; 
and in that short moment of bitter mortifica- 
tion he was converted to a new and holy life. 
He saw the vanity of earthly delights, and 
turned himself with all his heart to God. 

He spent some time after his conversion in 
retirement and prayer, in order to know the 
will of God, and to beg the divine help in his 
choice of a state of life. He was inspired with 
a great horror of sin ; and a saving fear of the 
judgment of God, joined to a sweet confi- 
dence in his blessed mercy, took possession 
of his soul. He felt a burning desire to wipe 



1 78 Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 

away his sins by giving himself to his Creator 
with all his heart, and whilst leading a life 
of penance and prayer, to turn the talents God 
had given him to the service of his fellow men. 
In a word, Peter felt all the desires of a truly 
noble and generous soul, not only to love and 
serve God, but to lead others also to love and 
serve Him. 

The Order of Friar Preachers, founded by 
Saint Dominic, his fellow-countryman, offered 
him all he sought. He, therefore, went to 
the monastery at Palencia, recently built, 
the home of many holy men. There he re- 
ceived the habit, and began a life of penance, 
prayer, and apostolic labors. He seems to 
have been about the age of thirt}', when he 
entered the Dominican Order. 

The year of his novitiate was a year of 
tears, shed for the sins of his youth, the 
memory of which was never absent from his 
mind ; but the wonderful mercy God had 
shown him in his conversion was an earnest 
of the happiness of heaven he was so eagerl}^ 
striving to attain. When he thought of the 
danger he had run of losing his soul he trem- 
bled — but the sweet memory of his conver- 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 1 79 

sion always re-assured him. He was one of 
the most fervent novices ; one of the most 
mortified ; was most edifying in conversa- 
tion, and, above all, was distinguished for his 
exact observance of the rule ; ver}^ prayerful 
and devout, more especially to the Blessed 
Virgin Mary, and to the most holy Sacra- 
ment of the altar. He also became remark- 
able for his love of holy purity, the fruitful 
parent of all Christian virtues. 

He had turned his back upon the world 
and its delights, but the world was not con- 
tent to lose him. Some of his friends, who 
pretended to be full of zeal for his welfare, 
went to see him and talked to him in this 
strain : *' You have taken a very serious step, 
and, as it seems to us, with but scant reflec- 
tion, whereas it is a step which requires 
years of thought and prayer." Others said: 
'' You have been brought up in luxury, and 
probably will not be able to observe the long 
fasts and observances of the rule you have 
embraced. Would it not have been better 
to have begun your penance^ more moderate- 
ly ? " Many suggested that he had thrown 
away the talent God had given him ; that 



1 80 Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 

he would have been very useful among the 
secular priests of the diocese, on account of his 
rank, but that in the Dominican cloister his 
life would be hidden and of no particular use 
to any one ; that as Dean of the Cathedral 
perhaps God had destined him for a great 
work ; and in fine, all the usual arguments 
pious but imperfect souls borrow from the 
maxims of the world when they see any one 
trying to lead a more perfect life than them- 
selves. But the novice, happy in his life of 
penance and prayer, saw through all these 
specious arguments, and happily persevered 
in the course he had begun. 

As soon as he had taken his solemn vows he 
studied theology and the holy Scriptures, 
and in due time began to preach. As a 
preacher, he was gifted with a special power of 
moving souls. Immediately after his sermon 
he was obliged to go into the confessional, 
and, although night found him still there, 
the penitents were not yet all confessed, and 
other confessors would be obliged to go to 
his aid. He went from town to town, village 
to village, preaching to all, rich and poor 
alike, and wherever he preached a complete 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 1 8 1 

change of morals took place. Never were 
there so many conversions, never such restitu- 
tion of ill-gotten gains, seldom so many quar- 
rels ended, and enmities happily terminated. 

He was truly a son of the apostolic Dom- 
inic, full of ardent zeal. He could always 
win the affections and confidence of the most 
hardened sinner, and it is said he never 
entered any house without hearing the confes- 
sion of those of its inmates who had wan- 
dered away from God. 

His success with souls was not the effect of 
natural gifts, but the fruit of holiness. Each 
night he passed in prayer and penance, offering 
himself to God for the conversion of sinners ; 
and although endowed with great natural 
eloquence, he by no means neglected the 
study of the art of preaching. To the irksome 
duties of the confessional he devoted himself 
with rare self-forgetfulness, and when called 
went at once. He would often say to the 
Fathers : ^* Let us go, dear Brothers, to 
gather up the precious blood of Christ, which 
has been shed for poor sinners.'' When hear- 
ing confessions he never scolded the penitent, 
nor showed any surprise, even when the sins 



1 8 2 Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 

were very grievous, but listened with such 
gentleness that the poor sinner imagined he 
was pouring out his sins and sorrows into the 
ear of him who was so pitiful to the Magdalen 
kneeling in sorrow at his sacred feet. Thus 
he gained souls for his divine Master, and 
extended the reign of God in the hearts of 
men. Can we think that he forgot the sins of 
his own youth and his wonderful conversion 
when he heard the confessions of poor sin- 
ners ? 

Ferdinand the Third, King of Spain, who 
was afterwards canonized, wished to have 
Blessed Peter for his confessor and director, 
and kept him at court for this purpose. The 
saint accompanied him and his army in the 
wars against the Moors, who were in posses- 
sion of the greater part of Spain at that time. 
Being thus brought into intimate connection 
with the young dissolute nobles of the court 
and the soldiers of the army, he set to work at 
once to reform them by leading the king to a 
very perfect rule of life, so that while the 
king made laws for his subjects to repress 
vice, he himself should set a good example. 

In a short time a great change could be seen 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 183 

in the morals and lives of the grandees of the 
court, who had hitherto been noted for their 
licentiousness. He was continually with the 
brave soldiers, in the camp, on the march, 
even in the battle-field ; and no one can imag- 
ine, sa}s one ancient author, the courage 
with which they fought, knowing that, having 
confessed to the saint before the battle, they 
were in a state of grace. He was also always 
consulted by the captains before any great 
engagement, and his advice was followed 
with the most favorable results. 

In the court he lived the same life of pen- 
ance, humility, and retirement as when he 
was in the cloister, but the evangelical free- 
dom with which he attacked the vices of the 
gay young nobles gained him many enemies. 
It could not be otherwise ; no fearless de- 
nouncer of sin can escape giving offence. So 
it was with Blessed Peter : for although his 
preaching and holy example drew many hearts 
to God, yet there were .some who, not wish- 
ing to change their evil lives, determined to 
silence him, by attempting to draw him into 
the same degrading sins which had enslaved 
themselves. 



1 84 Blessed Peter Gonzatez, 

One day, as some of these young gallants 
were talking together how they could draw 
the servant of God into sin, an infamous 
woman, possessed of many earthly charms, 
hearing their conversation, offered herself to 
tempt him, for she too had suffered from his 
denunciations. They accepted her offer, and 
went to be eye-witnesses of the saint's fall ; 
for in their blindness they could not imagine 
how he could resist when brought into inti- 
mate contact with temptation. 

Towards dusk the miserable creature went 
to the Dominican monastery, and asked to see 
Father Peter in private. When she was ad- 
mitted into his presence she fell on her knees 
weeping, and begged him to hear her confes- 
sion ; but as it was so late in the evening the 
saint prudently asked her to come again the 
next day. 

^' Holy Father/' cunningly answered this 
daughter of Eve, *^ the fame of 3^our virtues 
has spread abroad, and I know that you are 
full of zeal for the salvation of souls, therefore 
I have dared to come to you. I beseech you 
to come to my aid at once in my urgent need. 
I protest in God's sight that unless you hear 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 185 

my confession this night you will have to ren- 
der an account to him of my eternal loss." 
Thus solemnly called upon, and fearing no 
evil, Blessed Peter prepared to hear her con- 
fession ; when suddenly she said : '' Dear 
Father Peter ! I am ashamed to make known 
to you the fatal wound from which 1 suffer, 
and which tortures me beyond all expression. 
But know that I suffer a most ardent desire to 
enjoy your love, and tell you for certain that 
unless you consent I must die." 

The saint heard these shameful words with 
horror ; but illumined by a divine inspiration, 
did not spurn her at once. He said to her : 
'* My daughter, God will never allow me to 
be the cause of your death. Do not be sad, 
for you shall soon be freed from all danger. 
Yet wait awhile until I can find a suitable 
place." Then going into the next cell — the 
delighted libertines still on the watch, al- 
though the saint knew it not — he laid a pile of 
wood faggots on the ground, and set fire to 
them ; then calling to the miserable woman he 
threw himself into the flames: ''Come," he 
said to her, " and in this fiery bed I will satis- 
fy your desires." 



1 86 Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 

Now, although he lay thus among the 
flames, he was not burnt, and converted by 
the sight of this wonderful miracle, the young 
libertines rushed in, and falling on their knees, 
begged his pardon. The tempter was also 
converted, and became a true penitent, "a 
vessel," says the old writer, " of perfect 
purity." 

The army of King Ferdinand captured the 
city of Cordova, the capital of the Moorish 
kingdom in Spain, in the year 1236. Blessed 
Peter entered the city with the conquerors. 
It was a great victory for the Christians, for 
Cordova had been under Mahometan rule for 
five hundred years. The magnificent mosque 
was at once restored to the service of the true 
God, and the bells, which the Moors had 
brought from the famous shrine of Saint 
James at Compostella, three centuries before, 
were returned to it. When Compostella fell 
a prey to the Moorish conquerors, they had 
forced Christians to carry them to Cordova 
upon their shoulders, and now King Ferdi- 
nand ordered the captive Moors to take them 
back in the same way. 

Blessed Peter*s zeal found a wide field in 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 187 

the captured city. He restrained the ardor 
of the soldiers, saved the honor of many vir- 
gins, and the lives of numberless children. 
He purified the Mahometan mosques, and 
changed them into churches, preached the 
pure doctrine of Christ to the Moorish pris- 
oners, and delivered from their chains a 
number of Christians found in the prisons. 

But all the favors that King Ferdinand and 
his nobles continually showered upon him 
could not spoil him. Although held in the 
highest esteem, and in a position less perfect 
men would have envied, he hesitated not to 
leave all these honors when he thought the 
glory of God called him elsewhere. Learn- 
ing that there was great need of apostolic 
preachers in the provinces of Galicia and the 
Asturias, he left the court to go to preach 
there. 

Mariana, a well-known Spanish historian, 
thus speaks of him : *' About the same time 
there flourished an illustrious man called 
Peter Gonzalez, who, after having left the 
Court, where he held several offices, conse- 
crated the rest of his days to instructing the 
poor country peasants of Galicia and the 



1 88 Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 

Asturias. He became a celebrated preacher, 
and by means of missions, which he preached 
in all the towns and villages, banished ignor- 
ance and libertinism from those provinces/'" 

But before beginning his missions he re- 
tired for some time to the monastery of Gui- 
maraens in Galicia, to restore his spiritual 
strength, which he feared so many public 
employments had weakened. While there he 
seems to have been elected Prior, but his ar- 
dent zeal for the salvation of souls soon drew 
him forth from his retreat. 

He traversed the mountainous districts of 
the Asturias, preaching everywhere, never 
leaving any town or village without having 
converted many sinners, putting an end to 
long standing quarrels, and banishing all 
kinds of scandals. From this time until his 
death his life was one continual mission. 
Wherever he went he was received by the 
people as an angel from heaven, and multi- 
tudes followed him from place to place, so as 
to be always near him. He was especially 
successful at Compostella and Tuy, where he 
worked many miracles. The first miracle 
was at Tuy. New^s was brought that a 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 189 

priest, one of his friends, was seriously sick at 
Bayonne, a Spanish seaport, and although it 
was noon, and he had not yet dined, he set 
out at once to walk to Bayonne, a distance of 
nine miles. He left a message for his compan- 
ion, a young father, to follow him as quickly 
as possible. The Father also set out with- 
out dining, acting upon a spirit of ready 
obedience. But the devil, who does not like 
obedience, filled this young Father's mind 
with criticizing thoughts against his superior, 
and he shortly began to complain that the 
saint had little compassion for the. wants of 
others. He soon felt tired, and when he came 
to the base of a hill, called Bortella de Angella, 
said to a secular person who was with him: 
*' This good Father is so used to go from 
place to place fasting, that he does not think 
of us at all ; he measures all by his own ell, 
and seems to imagine young men, such as we, 
can go whole days without eating and yet 
make journeys of nine miles just at dinner 
time." Now, while he was talking, God made 
known his thoughts to the saint, w^ho was not 
far in advance. He turned towards them, 
and when they came near said ; ^' Go, my chil- 



1 90 Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 

dren, to that rock which you see, and you will 
find something there for your dinner/* They 
went and found two beautiful white loaves, 
wrapped up in a napkin, and a bottle of 
wine. Astonished at the sight they ran to 
the saint, carrying with them what they had 
found. He blessed the food and told them to 
eat what they needed, and leave the rest, 
which they did, and again followed the saint, 
who walked on in front, occupied in sweet 
discourse with God. They had not gone far 
when curiosity prompted them to return to 
see what had become of what they had left, 
but they found it had gone. Then the saint 
turned once more and said to them laughing : 
'* What made you return ? He who put 
the food there for you has taken away what 
you left." And thus they knew it was God 
who had sent them food at the intercession 
of Blessed Peter. 

Arrived at Bayonne, he visited his sick 
friend, and preached the next day in the 
church with such effect that he was obliged 
to remain in that town more than a year, 
preaching every day. The peasants came 
from the mountain sides in crowds, and were 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 1 9 1 

so charmed with his sermons and conversa- 
tion, that they were loath to return to their 
homes. Three times a day he preached or 
catechised, and the confessional claimed near- 
ly the rest of his time. Sometimes his hear- 
ers were so many that no church was large 
enough to hold them, and then the saint 
preached in the open air. On one occasion 
he was preaching to a very large crowd, near 
the walls of the town, when a fearful storm 
set in. The thunder rolled, the lightning 
flashed, and the rain threatened to disperse 
his audience. Every one thought of flight, but 
the holy preacher quickly calmed their fears, 
and prayed to God to protect them from the 
fury of the elements. His prayer was heard, 
and while torrents of rain flooded the country 
around, the place where he preached was 
quite dr}^, and he was able to continue his 
sermon without any discomfort, either to him- 
self or his hearers. 

Travelling one day near Compostella, he 
became very tired and thirsty on account of 
the great heat, so that he was obliged to go 
to the house of a parish priest to beg some- 
thing to drink. The good priest was not at 



192 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 



home ; he found only a maid servant, who 
said : '* I have a glass of wine at the bottom 
of a bottle, but my master especially told me 
to keep it for him on his return, so that I can- 
not give it to you/' '' Go/' said the Father, 
'' bring what you have, and God will give 
enough for me and for your master too/' 
She went at once, trusting to his w^ords, and 
found that the wine had been miraculously 
increased in the bottle. But the miracle did 
not end there, for when the priest came home 
and called for the wine the bottle was found 
quite full, although Blessed Peter had taken 
all he needed. . The priest remembered how 
little wine he had left in the bottle and asked 
the servant how it came to pass that it was 
now quite full. *' I believe,'' she answered, 
*^ that the wine is not of this world," and ex- 
plained the whole circumstance to her master. 
*^Has the good Father Peter been long 
gone?" ^'No," she answered; '*if you fol- 
low him at once, and walk fast you will 
soon overtake him/' He set out to follow 
the Father, and when he had overtaken him, 
begged him to go back with him to his house, 
but he thanked him, recommended him to 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 1 93 

tell his servant, in future, to give what she had 
to the poor, and to trust to God's providence 
to provide for the priest's needs. 

When Blessed Peter was Prior of Guimara- 
ens, he undertook a noble work, which has 
made his name famous in Spain. This was 
to build a bridge over the river Minho, at its 
junction with the Arnoya near Rivadavia. 
The passage of the Minho at this point was 
exceedingly dangerous, and many lives had 
been lost in attempts to cross it. He deter- 
mined to build a bridge. He went to the 
king and to several rich noblemen to ask 
them to help him in his work. They at once 
gave him a considerable sum of money, but 
on account of the great depth of the water, 
and the length of the bridge, what he received 
was not nearlv sufficient. The inhabitants of 
the neighborhood contributed generously 
according to their means ; one gave stone, 
another his time, and those who could, gave 
money. He worked hard with the builders, 
carried stone upon his own shoulders, mixed 
the cement and contributed more than any to 
its success. At times he left the workmen, 
and went with his companion. Father Peter de 



194 Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 

Marigny, to collect for the building of the 
bridge, and he spoke with such effect that he 
always got as much as he needed. 

He also worked miracles to help on the 
good work. When the workmen's provisions 
came to an end, and he had no money to pur- 
chase a new supply, he used to go down to 
the banks of the river, and making the sign of 
the cross over the waters, called the fishes. 
In a moment a number of them were seen 
swimming towards him to be caught, and 
when he had taken all he needed, he blessed 
the rest. They then swam away. This beau- 
tiful miracle, which often took place, called 
forth from the Father ardent praises of the 
good God. *' Is it possible;'' he v/ould add, 
^* that these poor creatures, who lack the use 
of reason, can be so prompt in obe3dng the 
word of a creature like myself, and that I, 
gifted with a rational soul, should be so deaf 
to the voice of my Creator ? " 

In due time the bridge was finished, and to 
this day remains a monument, not only of his 
charity, but also of his architectural science 
and taste ; for it is declared to be one of the 
noblest in Spain. 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 195 

Having preached in nearly all the princi- 
pal provinces of Spain, Blessed Peter turned 
his attention to the work of evangelizing the 
sailors, who thronged the seaport towns. He 
was very successful, but it was his last work. 

Having reached the age of fifty-six, he 
went to preach, on Palm Sunday, 1246, in the 
monastery church of the Benedictine nuns at 
Pesiguero, and during his sermon said : " I 
have two things to make known to you, my 
friends, which God has revealed to me. The 
first is that Jesus Christ, my Master, has told 
me that it is not prudent to allow so many 
people to follow me about, because several of 
them being weak, too young, or too old, can- 
not bear the fatigue of the journey ; therefore, 
in the name of my Saviour, I wish those who 
are here to follow me henceforth no longer. 
The second is that I shall not be among you 
much more, and shall never return here. 
Pray for me, then, for although, by the grace 
of God, my heart accuses me of nothing since 
I gave up the world, yet I do not think I am 
so sinless as not to need the prayers of the 
faithful.*' When he had finished his sermon 
all the people wept loudly, hearing that he 



196 Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 

was about to die. He took leave of them one 
by one, and then said farewell to the nuns. On 
the same day he returned to Tuy for holy 
week. 

He preached every day during the week, 
with such energy that his hearers cried out • 
** Never did any man speak like this.*' 

But he was taken sick, and knowing that 
his death was now at hand, set out for Com- 
postclla, that he might die among his brothers 
of the Order ; but coming to a little village, 
called Santa Columba, his weakness increased 
so rapidly that he saw it was useless to con- 
tinue his journey, and returned on foot to Tuy. 
He died there, at a friend's house, on Easter 
Sunday, April 15th, 1240, having received the 
last sacraments. 

There being no Dominican monastery in 
Tuy, he was buried in the Cathedral, between 
the choir and the principal entrance. The 
Bishop erected a magnificent tomb over his 
remains, and when he himself died was bur- 
ied by the holy man's side. A miraculous oil 
issued from Blessed Peter's tomb, and being 
collected in phials, worked miracles. 

His cultus was approved by Innocent the 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 197 

4th, who in a bull, issued in the year 1254, al- 
lowed the Dominican Fathers of Spain to cele- 
brate his feast every year with an office as 
solemn as if he had been canonized by the 
Holy See. In Tuy the feast was kept on the 
Wednesday after Low Sunday. 

The miracles worked at the tomb were so 
numerous, says Blessed Humbert de Romanis, 
that the Bishop of Tuy juridically verified no 
less than 180 in the first twelve years after the 
saint's death, and having signed the Docu- 
ments, and stamped them with his episcopal 
seal, sent them to the Fathers of the General 
Chapter of the Dominican Order, held at 
Toulouse, in the year 1258. In this list were 
five lepers, nine cases of diabolical possession, 
and many deaf and dumb who were miracu- 
lously cured by his intercession ; and it is 
worthy of note that it included several miracu- 
lous preservations from shipwreck and drown- 
ing. The Fathers of the Chapter, on receipt 
of the Bishop*s Documents, at once petitioned 
the Holy See to proceed to his solemn canon- 
ization. This request has often been re- 
newed. Thus, in the year 1592, Michael de 
Castro, Archbishop of Lisbon, wrote to Pope 



198 Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 

Clement the 8th, to ask the canonization of 
this servant of God, and in 1608 the Arch- 
bishop of Braga and his clergy, seconded by 
King Philip 3d, asked the same boon. At 
last, in the year 1741, Benedict the 14th again 
approved of his cultus, extended it to all the 
Dominican Provinces, and fixed his feast for 
the 14th of April. 

His relics have been translated several times. 
In 1529, when the Bishop of Tuy solemnly 
deposited them in a magnificent silver shrine, 
in a chapel near the north door of the Cathe- 
dral. In 1567 the chapel was enlarged and 
beautified, and the coffer in which the relics 
repose was raised much higher, so that it 
could be more easily seen. 

Blessed Peter is invoked by the Spanish 
sailors under the name of St. Elmo, or Telmo, 
which is supposed to be a corruption of Eras- 
mo. Saint Erasmo was the favorite patron of 
mariners until the time of Blessed Peter, when 
the sailors took him for their patron, but 
retained the old name. A hymn is sung in 
his honor, which runs as follows : 

*' Senor San Pedro Gonzalez 
De Navegantes piloto ; 



Blessed Peter Gonzalez. 199 

Libra nos de terremoto, 
Y defende nos de malos/' 
**Let us have recourse/' says a pious old 
author^ who wrote the life of our saint, '' to 
his protection, when we voyage on this 
stormy sea of the world, that he may be favor- 
able to us in the tempest which so often over- 
takes us, so that we may arrive at the safe 
port of that happy eternity which he enjoys 
forever/' 

Ant. O Blessed Peter, glorious confessor of 
our Lord, strengthen this people by thy 
holy intercession, that we who are op- 
pressed with the weight of our sins may 
be relieved through the glory of thy bless- 
edness, and under thy guidance gain 
everlasting rewards. 
V. Pray for us, O Blessed Peter, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who dost afford singular help, 
through Blessed Peter, to such as are in the 
dangers of the sea, grant through his inter- 



200 Blessed Peter Gonzalez, 

cession that in all the storms of this life the 
light of Thy grace may ever shine upon us 
whereby we may be able to gain the port of 
eternal salvation. Amen. 




BLESSED AUGl'STINE OF 
WOCERA. 



Blessed A ugustine of Nocera, 203 



BLESSED AUGUSTINE OF 
NOCERA. 

August Zth, 

THIS holy Bishop was born at Trau, a small 
seaport in Dalmatia, on the shores of 
the Adriatic. Dalmatia was dependent on the 
kingdom of Hungary at the time when 
Blessed Augustine came into this world. 

His father, Nicolas de Caczioth, was one of 
the most honorable and influential men of the 
town, and much respected for his virtuous 
life. His mother, Droslawa, was a daughter 
of the ancient house of the Draseovics, of 
Sign, a town near Trau. She was no less 
pious than her husband. They were blessed 
by God with a numerous family. 

The exact date of Augustine's birth has 
not been recorded, but is supposed to have 
been about the year 1259. All the ancient 
lives state that he was born in the same year 
that Bela, King of Hungary, took refuge in 



204 Blessed Augustine of Nocera, 

Trail, from the fury of the Tartars. Those 
fearful scourges of Christianity ravaged Hun- 
gary twice in the thirteenth century, in 1241, 
and again in 1259, and it was during this 
second invasion that it is supposed Augustine 
was born, for he was still young when he 
entered the Dominican Order in 1277 or 1278. 

The contagion of the world had not tar- 
nished the brightness of his innocence, when 
he asked to be admitted as a novice about the 
age of eighteen-. He gave great satisfaction 
in the novitiate, and after his profession be- 
gan his studies, in which he advanced so rap- 
idly that his superiors sent him to Bologna in 
Italy, and afterwards to Paris to study. 

He set out for France, in the year 1286, on 
foot, according to the general custom of 
those days. He was accompanied by a young 
novice, Jacopo Orsini, nephew to the Cardi- 
nal of the same name. Jacopo was no less dis- 
tinguished for his rare virtues than for his 
high rank. The students had not been many 
days on the road when they were attacked by 
two hired ruffians, who threw themselves 
upon them, and speedily killed Jacopo. They 
were the emissaries of the Counts of Casana- 



Blessed Augustine of Nocera, 205 

tense,the deadly enemiesof the Orsini. Blessed 
Augustine was wounded, and left for dead 
in the snow, for it was in the middle of win- 
ter. Happily, a gentleman of the neighbor- 
hood, Augustine Pagan de Petra, a staunch 
friend of the Dominican Fathers, happened 
to pass that way, and found the two novices 
lying upon the snow, to all appearances dead. 
He took them to his castle of Rebec, where 
Augustine revived, and after seeing his mur- 
dered companion buried in the neighboring 
Dominican Convent at Pavia, continued his 
journey alone. Arrived at Paris, Blessed 
Augustine resumed his studies, and gave the 
same satisfaction that he had already given 
in Italy and Hungary. He cultivated a very 
special devotion to the Angelic Doctor, Saint 
Thomas Aquinas, and sought so to model his 
life upon his that some of his ancient biog- 
raphers have called him a disciple of that 
holy doctor. 

But that he actually studied under Saint 
Thomas is easily shown to be a mistake, see- 
ing that the holy Doctor died in the year 
1274, two or three years before Augustine en- 
tered the Dominican Order. 



2o6 Blessed Augustine of Nocera, 

When his studies were finished he returned 
to his native country, and began the work of 
the apostolate among the people. With a 
heart free from sin, his intellect ripened by 
study, and his senses subdued by penance, his 
words had a wonderful effect upon his hearers. 
Many were converted. He rooted out the 
vices prevalent among the people, dissipated 
the clouds of ignorance which darkened their 
minds, and banished many evil superstitions 
which had crept into their daily life. 

Finding that he was insufficient alone to 
contend against the many evils around him, 
and in order to train up apostolic men for the 
work of preaching, he built several monaster- 
ies of his Order in Dalmatia. 

When he had preached several years in his 
native country, he was called by his superiors 
into Ital3\ The quarrels of the Guelphs and 
Ghibbelines had destroyed the peace of al- 
most every town and village in Italy, and had 
opened the way to innumerable errors against 
the faith. God raised up many holy and 
apostolic men to meet this danger, among 
whom Blessed Augustine was not the least. 
He preached much, and in many ways les- 
sened the evil. 



Blessed A ugustine of Nocera, 207 

From Italy he was sent into Bosnia, at that 
time a Christian state, although infected with 
many false doctrines, especially those of the 
Manicheans. He preached there with the 
same zeal and success as in Italy. From 
thence he passed into Hungary, which was 
also in a very lamentable state, both of faith 
and morals, owing to civil wars caused by the 
death of King Ladislas, who left no children 
to succeed him. Hungary was divided into 
three parties : One in favor of Otho, Duke of 
Bavaria, grandson of Bela the Fourth ; a sec- 
ond in favor of Wenceslaus the second, King 
of Bohemia, the son of the granddaughter of 
King Bela, King of Hungary ; and the third, 
and strongest, which supported the claim of 
Charles Robert, Prince of Anjou, son of the 
King of Sicily, and nephew of Saint Louis of 
France. Undoubtedly he had the strongest 
claim to the Hungarian crown, being a 
nephew of Ladislas, his father having married 
the Princess Mar}^ sister of that king. 

Pope Boniface Eighth sent Cardinal Nich- 
olas Bocasini, Bishop of Ostia, of the Order of 
Friar Preachers, as Legate into Hungary to 
further the cause of Charles Robert. While 



2o8 Blessed Aiigiistine of Nocera. 

there Cardinal Bocasini became the eye-wit- 
ness of the evangelical labors and indefati- 
gable zeal of Blessed Augustine, and when, two 
years later, he was raised to the pontifical 
throne, taking the name of Benedict nth, 
called him into Italy, to consult him upon the 
state of Hungary. When he had been several 
days in Rome he made preparations to re- 
turn. But the Pope, hearing of it, sent for 
him and appointed him Bishop of Zagrab. 
or Agram, in Hungary. Blessed Augustine 
wished to decline the honor, and was only led 
to accept it by the Pope's absolute command. 
He was allowed to set out for his diocese 
after his consecration. This was in the year 
1303. He found his Diocese in a very lament- 
able state. It had been subjected to an inva- 
sion of the Tartars sixty years before, and had 
not yet recovered from that fearful scourge. 
They had destroyed all the churches and 
monasteries, burnt the sacred books, and every- 
thing which could tend to preserve the faith ; 
so that in a few years the people had become 
ignorant, immoral, and almost uncivilized. 
But the greatest evil was that the clergy 
themselves had suffered no less than the peo- 



Blessed A ugustine of Nocera. 209 

pie, and had become grossly negligent of 
their sacred duties. 

Two holy Bishops had successively at- 
tempted to remedy this sad state of affairs, 
but both had died before effecting any radi- 
cal reform, a third had increased the evil, the 
fourth, the immediate predecessor of Blessed 
Augustine, had been translated to the arch- 
episcopal see of Grau, just as he was prepar- 
ing to put his diocese in order. 

Blessed Augustine began by reforming the 
clergy of his cathedral, and with marvellous 
tact and prudence succeeded in leading them 
to a more mortified and self-denying life. His 
personal example greatly contributed to this 
result, but it was by gentleness and kindness 
that he gained their hearts. 

He gave away the greater part of his epis- 
copal revenues to support the poor, widows, 
and orphans ; the remainder, after providing 
for his own necessities, he spent on the house 
of God. 

He increased the cathedral chapter by 
founding new prebandary stalls, which he 
filled with holy and zealous priests, educated 
under his own eyes. 



2 1 o Blessed A tig its tine of Nocera. 

Having thus reformed the clergy of his 
Cathedral, he set about the reformation of the 
clergy of the diocese. He visited the parishes, 
carrying with him all necessaries for the or- 
derly celebration of the Divine Offices, books, 
holy oils, and ornaments for the altar, and ap- 
pointed an able and pious priest for every 
parish. 

This salutary visitation the Bishop made 
every year. He also held an annual synod 
to discuss all questions relating to the right 
administration of the diocese. One of his 
synodal addresses has come down to us. It 
is of great erudition and describes in graphic 
terms the duties of a true pastor of souls. 

These visitations, which were always made 
on foot, were not only productive of good to 
the pastors, but equally so to the people. 

He led the pious to serve God better, and 
the sinner to the feet of Christ, there to weep 
for his sins, and to receive pardon. He re- 
stored peace everywhere, and reconciled ene- 
mies. As he walked along the road the poor 
country people crowded around him to ask 
his blessing, to receive an alms from his ever 
open hands, or to beg him to cure the sick. 



Blessed A ugustme of Nocera, 2 1 1 

whom they carried to him from their houses, 
and none ever went away without some 
spiritual blessing. 

He reduced the expenses of his episcopal 
palace to the very lowest sum consistent with 
dignity, that he might have more to give to 
the poor, and every year published an account 
of the way in which he spent his income ; 
looking upon himself as the mere administra- 
tor of the episcopal revenues. 

One of his immediate predecessors had be- 
gun to build a magnificent Gothic Cathedral 
which had never been finished. Blessed 
Augustine completed it, decorated and fur- 
nished it and the sacristies with great splen- 
dor. 

Soon after he was consecrated Bishop of 
Zagrab, he built a monastery for the Fathers 
of the Dominican Order, near his episcopal 
palace ; for he felt the want of men devoted 
to the apostolic life, who, free from parochial 
duties, could go about preaching and instruct- 
ing the people. He afterwards founded 
several others in various parts of his diocese. 
While this hard-working Bishop procured 
valuable spiritual advantages for the people 



2 1 2 Blessed A tigustiiie of Nocera. 

under his care, he did not neglect his own 
soul, and was accustomed to retire into the 
monastery of Zagrab, to refresh his tired 
spirit in calm meditation, and the community 
duties he loved so much. He attended choir 
like the humblest religious, and in all things 
conformed to the rules of the monastery, and 
when one of the priests of the diocese ex- 
pressed his surprise that the Bishop should so 
often be found in the monastery, he answered 
by citing the example of his patron, the great 
Saint Augustine, of Hippo. In favor of the 
religious of this monastery he wrought an as- 
tonishing miracle. 

The water of the little river which fertil- 
ized the countrv was unfit to drink, on ac- 
count of its mineral qualities. The Fathers 
having no other means of supply, knowing 
the holiness of the Bishop, and the influence 
of his merits with God, asked him to help 
them. He prayed earnestly, but fearing that 
when his prayers were heard they w^ould at- 
tribute it to his merits, he ordered the Fathers 
to pray also. After they had prayed they 
bored a well, and at once the water spouted 
out It has never ceased to flow, and is still 



Blessed A ugustine of Nocera, 2 1 3 

called Saint Augustine's fountain. This is 
but one of many miracles, and it is said they 
became so frequent, that to rid himself of the 
importunity of the people who crowded round 
him continually, asking for a miracle, he 
planted a tree near Czernick, in the middle of 
his diocese, which he solemnly blessed, and 
sent all who asked a miracle from him to this 
tree to gather some of its leaves, and in all 
cases they were cured. It was still in exist- 
ence m the seventeenth century, and was 
called Saint Augustine's tree; and although 
continually stripped of its leaves by the peo- 
ple, was still alive and flourishing. The 
Turks, who had taken a castle in the neigh- 
borhood, having been eye-witnesses of these 
miracles, thought to obtain the same miracu- 
lous cures, but being disappointed, set fire to 
it. It was soon consumed, but a new tree 
sprang from its roots, which became possessed 
of the same miraculous powers as the parent 
tree. In time a beautiful chapel was built 
there, and was much frequented by the peo- 
ple. 

In the year 1308, Pope Clement the 5th 
sent Cardinal Gentile de Montefiori, of the 



2 1 4 Blessed A ugustine of Nocera, 

Order of Saint Francis, to try to persuade 
the Hungarians to acknowledge Charles 
Robert as their lawful king. 

Ladislas, son of King Wencelaus of Bo- 
hemia, Avho hr.d seized the throne, had led so 
licentious a life that he had lost the favor of 
the powerful nobles who had crowned him. 
The Duke of Bavaria, learning this, entered 
the country with a powerful army and was 
crowned, King Ladislas having fled. The 
Duke's reign was of short duration ; he was 
taken prisoner by the Prince of Transylvania. 
It was at this time Cardinal Gentile arrived 
in Hungary. Blessed Augustine had never 
ceased to further the cause of Charles 
Robert. Cardinal Gentile, having learned of 
his holiness and influence, at once took him 
into his confidence. They acted in unison so 
wisely that they succeeded in assembling all 
the leading nobles and Bishops of the coun- 
try in the Convent of the Dominican Fathers, 
near Buda-Pest, to debate the matter. 

The Cardinal opened with a long speech, 
which does not seem to have been so success- 
ful as he desired, for the nobles murmured 
loudly, and declared they would choose their 



Blessed A tigustme of Nocera, 2 1 5 

own king, and not have one thrust upon them 
by the Pope. 

The holy Bishop Augustine then addressed 
them, and knowing their character, succeed- 
ing in calming their angry feelings, and by 
mild and prudent language, joined to sound 
reasoning, brought them to acknowledge 
Charles Robert as their king. He was 
crowned with the ancient iron crown of 
Hungary a. few days afterwards. Thus, after 
many years of labors and prayers, Blessed 
Augustine succeeded in restoring peace to 
the distracted kingdom. For the good of 
Church and State the newly crowned king 
kept Augustine for some time near his per- 
son, that he might have the benefit of his ad- 
vice. Two provincial councils of the Church 
in Hungary were held at this time, at Buda 
and Presbourgh, in which the influence of 
the Bishop of Zagrab was powerfully felt. In 
the year 131 1, Pope Clement the Fifth called 
him to take part in the general council of 
Vienne, in France. He returned to his dio- 
cese May, 1312, and again labored zealously 
for the honor and glory of God and the sal- 
vation of souls. His efforts were crowned 



2 1 6 Blessed A ugicstme of Nocera. 

with success. Many infidels and heretics 
were converted, and day by day the faithful 
increased in fervor and holiness. 

The religious of the different religious Or- 
ders occupied themselves in preaching to the 
people, and the secular clergy became scarce- 
ly less edifying. All these improvements 
were due to the energy, and to a great extent 
to the personal example, of Blessed Augustine. 

But God now wished to try him, and to 
perfect his virtues by means of persecutions. 
The Governor of the Province of Dalmatia 
was one Mladen, a man of distinguished 
family and very wealthy, but cruel and ava- 
ricious. During the long interregnum he had 
seized the opportunity to make himself a 
petty tyrant ; had become master of several 
important towns and fortified positions, which 
were really outside his province, reduced the 
poor to a miserable state of slavery, and per- 
secuted those bishops and priests who dared 
to withstand him. He had driven bishops 
from their sees, appointed unworthy men in 
their stead, and appropriated to himself much 
of the property of the Church. 

The holy Bishop Augustine dared to op- 



Blessed August me of Nocera, 2 1 7 

pose him, and in consequence Mladen became 
his deadly enemy. He not only refused to re- 
store the Church property he had seized, or 
repair the evils he had caused, but began 
openly to persecute the fearless Bishop of 
Zagrab. Blessed Augustine was much afflict- 
ed, but did not lose his peace of mind, putting 
his trust in God, and increasing his austeri- 
ties and prayers, to draw down God's mercy 
upon the miserable tyrant. King Charles 
Robert would willingly have defended him, 
but could not, for the servant had become 
almost as powerful as his master. 

God, who had thus tried the holy Bishop's 
patience, now removed him to another scene 
of labors. King Robert of Sicily asked Pope 
John 22d to give Blessed Augustine the See 
of Nocera, a town in his kingdom, which was 
unhappily infected with the errors and lax 
morals of the Mahometans. Many Saracens, 
during the evil reign of Frederick 2d, had 
settled there, and, although they had after- 
wards been expelled from the town, left be- 
hind them many remnants of their shameful 
doctrines and practices. 

The Pope consented, and King Robert at 



2 1 8 Blessed A ugustine of Nocera. 

once invited Augustine to accept the See. 
Although Augustine feared to leave his dio> 
cese to the mercies of Mlade.i, he accepted, 
and set out for Nocera. He distributed all 
he had to the poor, and quitted the diocese of 
Zagrab as poor as he had entered it, carrying 
nothing with him but his breviary. This was in 
the 3^ear 1317; he was then 58 years of age. On 
his way to Italy he paid a visit to his relations 
in Trau, and also to his mother^s family in the 
town of Sign, but unhappily he found that 
they were all heart and soul in the service of 
Mladen. To find them supporters of such a 
man, and thus accomplices in his crimes and 
injustice, caused him great grief, and he tried 
by all means to induce them to abandon 
his cause ; unhappily he could not succeed 
and endowed with the gift of prophecy, he 
foretold many evils, which God soon after in- 
flicted upon them for their sins. 

He left them, and continued his journey, 
until having come to the boundary of his new 
diocese, he fell on his knees and prayed God to 
give him strength to govern it for his honor 
and glory and for the salvation of souls. 
Amid the acclamations of the people he 



Blessed A iigiistinc of Nocera, 2 1 9 

solemnly took possession of his cathedral and 
diocese. 

His first public act was to restore the name 
of ** Saint Mary of Victories " to Nocera ; 
knowing well that it was to the Blessed Virgin 
he must look for help in his coming conflict 
with heresy and immorality. In a short time 
the place became truly Christian, all the 
superstitions left by the Mahometans soon 
disappeared, and vice was destroyed ; in 
short, he employed the same means and with 
the same success as at Zagrab. He built a 
church and monastery in Nocera for the 
Fathers of his Order, who again proved his 
most valuable helpers in the reformation of 
his diocese. He was truly a model Christian 
Bishop, visiting and instructing the people, 
full of zeal for the honor of God, building 
churches, ever at work for the sanctification 
of those committed to his charge. His very 
appearance, always calm and sweet, made 
one love him even more than his gifts of mir- 
acles and prophec3\ He was of extraordinary 
height, being half as tall again as ordinary 
men. His beard was long, and his whole 
bearing majestic. " His cheeks/' says an old 



2 20 Blessed A ugustine of Nocera, 

writer, " were ruddy on account of the ardor 
of his soul, his eyes like two serene stars 
which calm the storms, his head bald." 

In his novitiate he had made three resolu- 
tions, which he faithfully kept all his life, 
The first was to observe all the rules of the 
Dominican Order inviolably. This rule he 
never broke, even when in his capacity of 
Bishop he might, without any impropriety, 
have relaxed the rules to meet circumstances. 
He never eat meat, never was dispensed or 
dispensed himself from any of its fasts pre- 
scribed by the Dominican constitutions, al- 
though they comprise more thin half the 
year. One day he w^as dining at the same 
table with Benedict nth, himself a strict ob- 
server of the Dominican rules, when some 
partridges were put before him, the Pope 
thinking he required some strong food on ac- 
count of his great labors. Blessed Augustine 
at once determined not to eat them, but was 
perplexed how to refuse without being rude 
to the Pope. So he betook himself to pray- 
er, his constant refuge in any difficulty, and 
they were at once changed into fish before 
their eyes. 



Blessed A ttgustine of Nocera. 2 2 1 

It was this same zeal for the rules and mon- 
astic observances of his Order which led him 
to make all his journeys on foot, to wear the 
Dominican habit after his elevation to the 
episcopate, and to practise the strictest pov- 
erty. His habit was always of the poorest, 
and his cappa, or black cloak, was so old and 
thread- bare that it consisted of more than a 
hundred pieces. It is still preserved as a holy 
relic in the Cathedral of Nocera. The friars 
once wished him to ask a certain Baron to pa}^ 
them a legacy the Baron's father had left 
Blessed Augustine in his will. *' My Fath- 
er/' Saint Dominic, he answered, " by his 
will ordered me not to have any temporal 
possessions. The Baron's father, by his will 
wishes that I should. I would rather follow 
the wishes of my own Father than of his " 

His second 'resolution was never on anj^ oc- 
casion to relax his exercises of pra3^er, or to 
omit his daily meditations. This resolution 
he also faithfully observed. He kept himself 
continually in the presence of God, and often 
•robbed time from his rest to spend in prayer. 

The last of the three resolutions was to 
cherish in his heart a warm and childlike de- 



2 2 2 Blessed A ug us tine of Nocera, 

votion towards our Blessed Lady, to his holy 
father Saint Dominic, and to all the saints of 
the Dominican Order. He gave our Blessed 
Lady the most beautiful proof of love in the 
sweet smelling lily of chastity, which bloomed 
always unfaded in his virginal heart. He 
never began any duty without saluting his 
Mother in heaven, and was accustomed to pray 
thus to her : '' Give me strength, good Moth- 
er ! and I will preach thy name." To Saint 
Dominic he was scarcely less devout. His 
life was full of obedience to the holy founder 
of his beloved Order, and few more beautiful 
examples of a true and perfect Dominican can 
be found than this holy man. By becoming a 
Bishop he did not cease to be a religious, and 
he used his influence, in all legitimate ways, 
to extend the influence of his Order. He or- 
dered the feast of Saint Dominic to be kept 
in all the churches of his diocese, and gave 
his clergy the Dominican breviary and cere- 
monies, which they kept for several centuries. 
To all the holy saints who wear the white 
robes of the Friar Preachers in the court of 
heaven, he was most devout, more especially 
to Saint Thomas Aquinas, for whose solemn 



Blessed A ugtistine of Nocera, 223 

canonization he labored much, and to Saint 
Peter of Verona, whose arm he possessed and 
bequeathed to his cathedral at Zagrab*. 

The year before his death his prediction of 
the punishment which would be inflicted up- 
on his relations for having given their support 
to the tyrant Mladen was accomplished. Ex- 
cessive cruelties had made him so hateful to 
the people of Dalmatia, that several towns 
united in league against him. Trau and Sign 
were among the number. 

Mladen, at the head of a large army, marched 
against Sign, and besieged it. He destroyed 
the outworks, burnt and plundered all the 
houses round the town. After this he sent 
messengers to the beseiged citizens, to propose 
a settlement ; they fell into the trap. 

Their magistrates and leading men, as he 
had requested, went out to his camp, when he 
treacherously caused them all to be arrested, 
loaded with chains, and cruelly put to death, 
under his eyes. 

After thus wreaking his vengeance upon 
Sign, he marched towards Trau, but happily 
met with a repulse and his tyrrany soon came 
to an end. His brother Paul, at the head of 



2 24 Blessed A ttgustine of Nocera, 

the Dalmatian nobles,attacked him on his way; 
all his satellitesfledjWhen they saw his day had 
passed, and thus, abandoned by the greater 
part of his army, he was taken prisoner, and 
sent to the King of Hungary, who spared his 
life, but imprisoned him in the town of 
Zagreb,where he had insulted the holy Bishop 
Augustine for justly opposing his evil designs. 
These important events happened in 1323, 
and on the third of August of the same year 
Augustine died at the age of 64, in the 20th 
year of his episcopate, during which time he 
had never ceased to fulfil with untiring zeal 
all the functions of a true successor of the 
apostles, of a father of the poor, of a good 
shepherd occupied solely with the care of 
those committed to his chage. A few days 
before his death he felt his end approaching, 
and went to the Dominican monastery to die 
among his brethren. He was buried in the 
Dominican church, as he had desired. His 
sanctity was proved after his death by very 
numerous miracles, but he became famous 
more especially for miraculous cures of those 
possessed by evil spirits. These miracles, 
and the holiness of his life, caused Charles 



Blessed A ugitstme of Nocera, 225 

Duke of Calabria to petition the Pope to ap- 
prove his cultus. The Duke's letter to the 
Pope, dated Oct. 20, 1324, only two years 
after Augustine^s death, is still extant. Pope 
John 22d acceded to this request, canonized 
the holy Bishop, and granted a proper office 
for his feast to be said in the diocese of 
Nocera. This office is also still in existence. 
A picture of the Saint was placed in the 
cathedral, having this inscription written un- 
derneath, " Saint Augustine, Bishop of Noce- 
ra, of the Order of Friar Preachers \' but 
although his canonization seems to have been 
certain, it was thought fit, in the year 1702, to 
reconfirm his cultus, as no authentic records 
existed to prove the canonization by John 
22d, except a constant tradition and unbroken 
cultus. Clement nth, therefore, in the year 
1702, confirmed the cultus of Blessed Augus- 
tine, and allowed his office to be kept by the 
Dominican Provinces throughout the world, 
in the ecclesiastical province of Benevento, 
of which the diocese of Nocera is a part, and 
in the dioceses of Spoleto, Trau and Zagrab. 
His relics, comprising his body, stole, 
maniple, girdle, alb, shirt, and hat are pre- 



2 26 Blessed A ug us tine of Nocera. 

served in the chapel of Saint Roche in the 
church of the Dominican Fathers at Nocera. 
The hat is in special veneration, and is sol- 
emnly carried to the sick, and has been mir- 
aculous in many cases. His relics were 
placed in a costly marble shrine in the year 
i6i I. He has always been regarded as one of 
the principal patrons of Nocera. His feast, 
which was originally kept on the 3d of Au- 
gust, the anniversary of his death, is now cel- 
ebrated on the 8th of the same month. 
Tomko, Coadjutor Bishop of Zabrab, wrote 
his life in the 17th century. 

But before closing this life we must not 
omit to record the conversion of Mladen, a 
miracle of grace attributed by all to the merits 
of Blessed Augustine. He was kept prisoner 
many years in the town of Zagrab, without 
showing any signs of repentance for his sins. 
At length he escaped, and flying from town 
to town, at last fell into the hands of the in- 
habitants of Trau, w^ho spared his life, and in 
a short time his heart became softened, and 
he who had led the life of a notorious sinner 
and evil-doer, became a model of Christian 
penance, and died a holy death. 



Blessed A ugustine of Nocera. 227 

Prayer, 

Ant, I will liken him to a wise man who 
built his house upon a rock. 
V. Pray for us, O Blessed Augustine, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 

promises of Christ. 

LET US PRAY. 

O God, who wast pleased to pi'ovide for 
Thy Church, in example of the good Shep- 
herd, in the Blessed Augustine, mercifully 
grant that through his intercession we may 
be found worthy to be placed in Thy pasture 
forever. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. 




? 



BLESSED FRANCIS DE POSADAS. 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 231 



BLESSED FRANCIS DE POSADAS. 



MODEL OF gOSARIANS. 



September 20th. 

THIS humble priest, and servant of God, 
has left us the memory of a sweet example 
of a Christ-like life. Having passed through 
childhood holily, he gave himself to God in 
the springtime of youth. A model religious, 
zealous priest, fervent apostle, a wise and favor- 
ite director of souls, he was, above all things, 
a devoted servant of Mary and Dominic ; al- 
ways and everywhere preaching the Rosary, 
that beautiful devotion which Mary's hands 
and Dominic's lips gave to the Christian 
world. 

He lived in the 17th century, and was one 
of those chosen souls whose saintly lives 
saved the world from utter corruption in an 
age when unbelief, infidelity, and immorality 
ravaged the fold of Christ. His father, 
Stephen Martin Posada, and his mother, Mary 



2 :; 2 Blessed Francis de Posadas, 



o 



Fernandez, although poor, both belonged to 
ancient families. During the war under 
Philip the 4th, they were forced to flee from 
Lama de Arcos in Castille, their native town ; 
and, wandering from place to place in An- 
dalusia, went to Cordova, where, with what 
remained of their earthly possessions, the}' 
opened a linen and silk store ; but this having 
failed, and all their little fortune spent, they 
sold fruits and beans, until at last his mother 
was forced to cry eggs in the streets. 

This pious couple had several children, but 
God had taken them to himself. The afflict- 
ed and childless woman, finding that she was 
again about to become a mother, offered her 
unborn babe to the Blessed Virgin Mary, 
promising her that if it was a boy and lived, 
she would persuade him to enter the Order of 
Saint Dominic, and that when he was or- 
dained priest he should say his first Mass at 
the altar of the Holy Fountain, a favorite 
shrine of the Blessed Virgin in Cordova. 
She also made a visit to the chapel of our 
Lady of the Rosary of the Dominican Church 
of St. Paul in Cordova, and humbly kneeling 
before the altar, prayed in words like to these ; 



Blessed Francis De Posadas. 233 

" My Mother and my Queen ! may it be 
pleasing to you that my child may belong to 
you." 

This child, so piously dedicated to God 
before its entrance into this world, was born 
November 25th, 1644. At the moment of his 
birth a new star appeared in the heavens 
above his mother's poor and unpretentious 
dwelling, and a very singular light was seen 
in the chamber, which caused all present to say : 
*' This child will become a saint/' He was bap- 
tized in the parish-church of Saint Andrew. 
As soon as his mother was able she carried 
him to the chapel of our Lady of the Rosary 
in St. PauTs Church, and placing him at the 
feet of the statue of the Queen of Heaven, 
said : " This my son is no longer mine but 
thine." This gift was accepted ; for Mary 
took the little child Francis, as we shall see, 
all for her own. 

It was noticed that on Mondays, Wednes- 
days, and Fridays he took nourishment only 
once and not until late in the evening. The 
first word he pronounced was the sweet name 
of Mary, and the first complete sentence the 
" Hail Mary." VVhen a mere child he began 



234 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

to fast on bread and water every Friday in 
Lent. At the age of five he made his first 
confession, and surprised the confessor by 
his more than child-like wisdom. He was 
allowed to receive Holy Communion when 
he was seven years of age. Every morning 
he served several Masses in the Dominican 
Church of St. Paul. His heart was full of 
compassion for the poor, and he set aside all 
he could lay his hands upon for them, although 
there was no abundance in his mother^s house. 
She gave him two little images, one of our 
Divine Lord, the other of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary, and he made a little altar for them and 
said the Rosary there every day. 

He often gathered together as many as for- 
ty children of his own age, and foraung a 
procession, led them through^ the streets of 
the town saying the Rosary. Although these 
children were so young, they were so modest 
in their behavior, and so earnest in their piety, 
that one of the principal citizens, Louis de 
Xeres, took great delight in accompanying 
them, saying : "• Who could fail to be devout, 
seeing such piety in children ?" After they 
had said the Rosary Francis preached a little 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 235 

sermon to them. '* Why do you offend God ?" 
he would say ; " God, who gives us being and 
who takes care of us always." '' Be careful 
about what you say," he once said, " because 
those who speak evil words and those who 
listen will both become the prey of the devil." 

If they came to a wayside cross, that beauti- 
ful sight so often seen in Catholic countries, 
they all knelt down and prayed thus : '' O 
Cross ! upon which our God died, separate us 
from the evil company of the devil." 

Sometimes he and his companions went to 
play on the slopes of the Sierra Morena 
mountains, near the town. While they amused 
themselves with childish play he would retire 
unseen into one of the caves in the mountain 
sides, to pray and very often to do penance. 

Several times during his youth God showed 
how dear this young boy was to him, by pre- 
serving him in a wonderful way from danger. 
Thus, when attacked with the pest, and all 
hope of recovery had been given up, he sud- 
denly recovered, contrary to all expectations. 

Another time, attempting to pick a flower, 
he fell into a well, but was miraculously sus- 
pended in the air, and was drawn out again 



236 Blessed Francis de Posadas, 

by no earthly hand. Once, while bathing, he 
was carried away by the current ; recommend- 
ing himsell to Mary, the Mother of God, he 
suddenly found himself on the river side. 

The Most Holy Virgin appeared to him one 
night in a dream, holding several rosaries in 
her hand, and sweetly invited him to select 
one of them : no doubt to reward him for his 
faithfulness in reciting the rosary, and to en- 
courage him more and more to love that beau- 
tiful devotion. His angel guardian made 
himself visible to him frequently under the 
form of a beautiful child, clothed in the habit 
of Saint Dominic. 

Francis knew that his mother had vowed 
that he should enter the Order of that holy 
saint, and he desired nothing more than to do 
so. But his father having died, his mother 
remarried. Her second husband was a man of 
strange character, and would not hear of it. In- 
stead of allowing him to learn Latin, heappren- 
ticed him to a workman, who treated him with 
great cruelty ; but Francis put his trust in 
God, and bore all this ill-treatment meekly. 

Other misfortunes soon fell upon him. The 
devil, seeing the patient youth become holier 



Blessed Francis de Posadas, 237 

and holier, began to persecute him, hoping to 
wear out his endurance, and to entice him in- 
to some sin. Under the form of a black-a- 
moor he appeared to him, and tried to snatch 
the rosary from his neck, where he always 
carried it. The holy youth held it with one 
hand, while he made the saving sign of the 
cross with the other, sa3nng to the devil : 
'* Look at the cross ! " and the arch-fiend 
immediately took flight. Having thus learnt 
how formidable the Rosary is to the devil, he 
always carried two with him : one round his 
neck and the other in his pocket. The devil, 
not being able to harm his soul, revenged 
himself upon his body by striking and mal- 
treating him ; God permitting this to test 
his patience and humility. 

Some persons having noticed how Francis 
was tormented, fearing that he might be pos- 
sessed, took him to be examined by a learned 
priest, who after he had questioned him said : 
** Tell his parents that he ought to be set to 
study, that he may become a religious, and 
then all this will cease." His mother was only 
too willing that he should do so, but his step- 
father refused to receive him at home. 



238 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

One of the Dominican Fathers of Saint 
Paul's monastery came to his aid and offered 
him a part of his own cell. He gladly 
accepted this offer, and began to study Latin 
grammar with the children, although he was 17 
years of age, rejoicing in the contempt heaped 
upon him on account of his ignorance. He 
soon surpassed them, and showed that he was 
possessed of great aptitude for study, and en- 
dowed with natural quickness of mind. His 
mother, having become a wddow a second 
time, he returned to his home. He cherished 
his mother, served her with such tender love 
that she often said to her friends : ** My son 
is a saint ; he bathes my feet, he makes my bed, 
obeys me in all things, and gives me every 
mark of love." , How different his conduct 
from that of young men of our time ! They 
accept every service from their parents, but 
give nothing in return. In his old age he 
once said : *' If God is so merciful to me it 
is on account of the good will with which I 
always obeyed my mother." And when he 
was nominated Bishop several times he said : 
** I attribute these marks of honor to God 
alone, who wishes perhaps to reward me for 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 239 

the ardent desire 1 always had to honor my 
mother." 

At length, when he was sufficiently ad- 
vanced in his studies, his mother, at his own 
request, applied to the Dominican Fathers of 
Saint Paul's monastery in Cordova, to re- 
ceive him as a choir novice. She was refused, 
not on account of his family, which was an 
ancient and honorable one, but because his 
mother had exercised the calling of huckster 
in the city. 

This was an unlooked-for and terrible blow 
to Francis, and a great mortification to his 
worthy mother. So she persuaded him to 
ask entrance into another religious Order, 
where he was joyfully accepted. 

When the day came for him to go he went 
to say farewell to the Blessed Virgin Mary in 
the Rosary Chapel of the Dominican Church. 
He found it very hard to leave this chapel, 
which he loved so much. On his return he 
seemed very sad, and when his mother asked 
the cause of his grief, he replied : ^' I am sad, 
and shall weep all my life because, wishing to 
be a son of Saint Dominic, you oblige me to 
enter another Order.'* Alarmed by what he 



240 Blessed Francis de Posadas, 

said she went to consult the Dominican Fath- 
er who had been so kind to him. This good 
Father, learning how firm the young man was 
in his desire to become a Dominican, bethought 
of some excuse to prevent his going to the 
monastery in which he had been accepted, so 
that by gaining time he might find some mon- 
astery of the Dominican Order willing to re- 
ceive him. 

Accordingly he recommended him to the 
Prior of the celebrated monastery of Scala 
Coeli, founded by Blessed Alvarez of Cordova, 
in the beginning of the fourteenth centur}^ 
three miles from Cordova, on the first slope of 
the Sierra Morena mountains. The fathers of 
this monastery, after making inquiries, received 
him unanimously, and after giving him the 
habit, sent him to make his year of novitiate 
in the monastery of Saint Catherine de Jaen. 
As soon as the Prior of Saint PauFs in Cor- 
dova heard that Francis was about to receive 
the Dominican habit at Scala Coeli, he im- 
mediately wrote to oppose it ; but being too 
late, he laid a complaint before the Father 
Provincial, who having examined into the mat- 
ter, confirmed what the Prior of Scala Coeli 



Blessed Francis de Posadas, 241 

had done. Francis entered the Order in the 
year 1662, when he was 18 years of age. 

After his novitiate he made his profession, 
November the 25th, 1663, his nineteenth birth- 
day, and then returned to Scala Coeli ; upon 
which the Prior of Saint PauTs forbade him 
to visit Cordova. This was very humiliating ; 
but no doubt it was the intention of God to 
humble him early in life, and thus to lay the 
foundation of solid humility in his heart. 
From Scala Coeli he was sent to the monastery 
at San Lucar at Barrameda, to study philoso- 
phy and theology. There he became remark- 
able, not only for his sanctity, but also for his 
quickness in his studies. One day he heard 
Father Gonzalez, a Jesuit, preach ; from that 
time he became a saint, all on fire with the 
love of God. He redoubled his fasts and 
penances, and gave himself to the service of 
the poor, striving in all things, great and 
small, to become a perfect religious. 

He was ordained priest at Barrameda, after 
which he went to Cordova to say his first 
Mass at the altar of Our Lady of the Holy 
Fountain, to fulfil his mother's vow, and then 
returned to San Lucar, where he was employed 



242 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

in preaching. He converted many sinners 
in that town ; and his zeal for souls became 
such as to rival that of the great Dominican 
Apostle, Saint Vincent Ferrer. One woman, 
whom he converted, said of him: "No one 
could fail to be converted having heard this 
saint preach." 

God made known to him that he would be- 
come a great preacher and fisher of men. 
One night he had the following dream : '' I 
dreamed," he said, '' that I was on the banks 
of a river catching fish with my mouth. As- 
tonished at this peculiar manner of fishing, I 
awoke, and at first was afraid it was some de- 
ception, but after this dream I felt so great a 
love for God and my neighbor, that not being 
able to remain in the monastery, I went out 
into the country, and not finding any souls to 
save there, began to fill the air with my sighs." 

The prediction contained in this vision was 
fully verified in his apostolic ministry. 

Having been recalled to Scala Coeli, he 
passed through Cordova, where the Prior of 
Saint Paul's, who had heard of his virtues 
and holiness, asked him to preach in the 
church. He willingly consented, but the 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 243 

fathers of the monastery refused to listen to 
him. He bore this affront with patience. He 
also preached in the other churches in the 
town, and having done much good by his 
sermons, the fathers of Saint Paul's monas- 
tery at length owned they had done him 
wrong by their behavior towards him. 

One who had been the foremost in the 
opposition to him, wished to make him a pub- 
lic reparation. When Blessed Francis came 
out of the pulpit after one of his sermons, 
he went to meet him, embraced him with 
great affection, in the sight of all the people, 
and formed such an affection for him that he 
often accompanied him on his missions. 

On his return to Scala Coeli the fathers 
appointed him to take charge of a hospital, 
close to one of the gates of the town of Cor- 
dova, which was under the care of the Domin- 
icans. He lived there until his death, being 
absent only when he gave missions. 

The day of his arrival he saw an angel, who 
told him that he would meet with many crosses 
there. In the evening he always rang the 
bell to call the people together to say the ros- 
ary, and in the day-time remained for hours 



244 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

in the contessional, where crowds gathered 
the whole day, he having to remain there fre- 
quently until late at night. Very great sin- 
ners went to confession to him, and he began 
to experience many temptations when hearing 
the sad stories of their lives. " But God made 
me as if dead," he said, *' and I began to learn 
how generous he is to those who expose 
themselves to danger for the sake of souls.'' 

To this gift God added an intuitive knowl- 
edge of the state of his penitents* souls. '* Why 
do you hide such and such sins from me,*' he 
said to some w^ho concealed their grievous 
sins, and he told them the number and kind of 
those sins of which they were so ashamed. 
"" You must confess this sin," he said to an- 
other, "because you have not yet accused 
yourself of it," and he named the sin. And to 
a'woman who kept silence about some sin she 
was guilty of he said : " This is the sin you 
are ashamed to acknowledge." He reminded 
one man of a sin he had committed twelve 
years before, which he thought was complete- 
ly hidden. To another he said: " Why do 
you come to confession without any intention 
of banishing the hatred from your heart which 



Blessed Francis de Posadas, 245 

you have for your own daughter?" And in 
this way he led them to unburden their souls 
to God. 

Sometimes the Blessed Virgin Mary sent 
him sinners to convert. One day she ap- 
peared to a woman who was leading a bad 
life, and said to her : " Go to Father Posa- 
das and confess your sins to him." She 
went, changed her life, and spent the re- 
mainder of her days in penance for her sins. 
The holy angels aided him in the work of the 
ministry. One evening he went to hear the 
confession of a woman who was in danger of 
death. It was a very stormy night and the 
wind blew out his lantern ; but an angel ap- 
peared at his side carrying a torch, and ac- 
companied him to the house and back again 
to the hospital. Another time, as he was 
seated near his confessional, he saw two 
women enter the church, to one of whom he 
said : " Come here, my daughter ; the Lord 
calls you ; come and make your confession." 
And the woman, turning to look at him, saw 
that he was surrounded by a heavenly light. 
Then, although she had no intention of recon- 
ciling herself to God, she spent the whole 



246 Blessed Francis de Posadas 

morning in making a general confession ; and 
so sincerely repentant was she that she soon 
repaired all the scandals she had formerly 
given. 

Blessed Francis touched the hearts of the 
most hardened without difficulty. One day 
a certain person found him in tears and asked 
him what was the matter. *' What can be 
the matter with me," he said, " if it is not 
that I am the vilest, most miserable, and most 
infamous man and the most ungrateful wretch 
on the face of the earth." 

One day, near the end of his life, he said to 
his confessor : ** I should so much like to have 
a great sorrow for my sins, that every 
morning in the holy Mass I ask my divine 
Lord to grant me true contrition." When 
he preached the church was filled early in 
the morning, and many were obhged to 
stand in the porch. Sometimes it became 
necessary to preach in the open air, the crowd 
being so large. Bishops, Inquisitors, the cler- 
gy, many noblemen and persons of high rank 
were to be found among his audience, and 
every one said: ** He is a saint ; another St. Vin- 
cent Ferrer ; a second St. John Chrysostom." 



Blessed Frances de Posadas. 247 

As soon as he began to speak his voice made 
his hearers tremble; and after awhile the love 
of God which filled his heart set his soul all 
on fire, his face shone with supernatural light, 
and his body often seemed surrounded with 
rays of glory. Many times his feet were 
raised above the earth, and the people could 
see that he no longer stood on the ground but 
was raised in the air. His voice resounded 
afar, and the astonished people often cried 
out that he was an angel and not a man. Once 
a bright flame was seen to come from his 
mouth, at another time he was surrounded by 
bright seraphim enveloped in clouds of light ; 
this was testified to by many witnesses. But 
when he preached of the goodness of God, or 
of the sweetness with which he invites and 
patiently awaits sinners, or of the love of God 
for us, his tears fell, sobs stifled his voice, and 
he was frequently obliged to leave the pulpit 
without finishing his sermon. Thus it is re- 
lated that preaching on the feast of St. Philip 
Neri on the love of God for men, he began to 
weep vehemently, and his tears excited such 
emotion among the audience that he was 
obliged to discontinue his sermon. 



248 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

When preaching missions he found many 
who were ignorant of their Christian duties, 
and often spent the whole day in instructing 
them in Catholic doctrine. 

He completely changed the people of Cor- 
dova. He persuaded the inhabitants to close 
the theatres, and all other places of amuse- 
ments dangerous to morality, by preaching 
energetically against vice and sinful pleasures. 
At first the nobles and young men about town 
were very angry, but the saint's preaching and 
his holy life gained their hearts, and they too 
repented of their sins, and began to live ac- 
cording to the teaching of religion. Missions 
succeeded each other in every parish church 
in the town, preached by zealous and holy 
priests, headed by Cardinal Belluze, at that 
time canon of the cathedral. 

Processions of penitents reciting the Ros- 
ary wended their way through the streets, 
and the confraternities in honor of the Blessed 
Virgin Mary increased so much that the whole 
town appeared devoted to her service. When 
Blessed Francis went out the people followed 
him, saying: ** Here is the saint.'' As he 
passed they came out of the houses to kneel 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 249 

and receive his blessing, to kiss his scapular, 
or obtain something which had belonged to 
him. All this filled him with confusion. 
Every one sought his counsel, believing that 
he was enlightened by God. The Bishop, 
parish priests, the governor of the town, 
judges, — all applied to him for advice in diffi- 
cult cases, and he often gave proof that his 
judgment was superior to that of men. 

His name became famous in every part of 
Spain. King Charles 2d wished to have him for 
his confessor, and twice nominated him Bish- 
op ; first of Alhieri, in Sardinia, afterwards of 
Cadiz ; but notwithstanding the earnest wishes 
of Cardinal Salazar, he would not accept so 
great a dignity. To all the Cardinal's reasons 
he contented himself by saying: '*Your 
Eminence wishes to persuade me, but you 
will never shake my resolution." He could 
never think of the honors which all showed 
him without tears, and when a friend asked 
him what gave him such grief, he said : "Alas ! 
have I not need to weep for fear that when I 
try to humble myself I only meet with praises 
and honor? " 

When the Fathers of the Monastery of the 



250 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

Holy Martyrs in Cordova elected him Prior, 
he refused the dignity, and in his letter to the 
Provincial said : '' O that the Blessed Virgin 
would come to my aid. 1 would rather be 
condemned to a galley-ship than be Prior/' — 
Later on, when he received several votes for 
the office of Provincial, he smiled and said : 
** I think the fathers wish to have a carnival 
at my expense." The see of Cordova having 
become vacant, a report gained ground that 
he would be nominated. This annoyed him 
much. — " Would it not be monstrous," he said, 
** tosee a man brought up in the midst of mar- 
ket baskets in this town with a mitre on his 
head?" 

But it was when he thought of his unwor- 
thiness to be a priest, to stand at the altar to say 
Mass, and take his God, hidden in the Blessed 
Sacrament, into his hands, that he felt hum- 
bled the most. He was once heard to say : 
** O ! what fatality ! a God to come in my 
hands ! " When he came to the elevation in 
the Mass, his body trembled, and he could 
not stifle his sighs. 

One day,whenourLord had deigned to appear 
to him in the Blessed Sacrament,his agitation 



Blessed Francis cie Posadas. 251 

was so great that the assistant feared the tlost 
would break in his hands. At another time, 
wrapped in ecstacy, his feet were raised from 
the ground without his knowing it, for he said 
to his confessor afterwards: '* I know not if it 
was the earth which was wanting to me, but 
1 do not understand what happened. Would 
to God that I was grateful to him for all his 
graces." Once, when he said the words of 
consecration, our Lord said to him : '' My 
son, it is I, who am what I am." He remained 
several instants out of himself, and then ele- 
vating the host, his soul drew his body up- 
wards and he was suspended some time in the 
air. When he came down again a number of 
persons saw that he was surrounded by bril- 
liant light. This heavenly light frequently 
appeared when he celebrated the holy mys- 
teries ; the wrinkles on his face vanished, his 
brow became as transparent as glass, and his 
cheeks, which were usually pale, all on fire. 
At the Gospel a ray of light was sometimes 
seen to issue from his mouth ; and twice on 
the feast of Pentecost a light, so dazzling that 
the whole altar was lit by it, came from his 
body. The Most Holy Virgin sometimes ap- 



252 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

peared to him, when he celebrated the Mass in 
her honor. Once on the feast of her Nativity, 
she caused him to see her in her cradle ; and 
on the feast of her Compassion she appeared 
to him as she stood at the foot of the cross. 
The holy Apostles Saints Peter and Paul, the 
martyr St. Catherine, to whom he was most 
devout, and many other saints appeared to 
him on their feast days during the holy sac- 
rifice. The angels themselves assisted at it, 
holding his hands at the elevation. We 
should not be astonished at this, for do we not 
know that the angels are our guardians upon 
earth, and that they always assist with great 
respect during Mass, adoring our hidden 
Saviour in the sacrament of his love ? Our 
eyes are not worthy to see them, and many 
never give their holy presence a thought, yet 
they are no less around and about us, pray 
for us without ceasing, and continually pre- 
serve us from harm. Finding in Blessed 
Francis a pure soul, and a heart all given to 
God, they made themselves visible, to mani- 
fest his holiness and to give honor to God. 
Several persons recovered the health of their 
souls, and others the health of their bodies. 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 253 

by attending Mass celebrated by the holy 
priest. At the end of the Mass numbers of 
sick crowded around him, asking him to read 
the Gospel over them, and many were 
healed. Among other miraculous cures 
worked in this way, he several times gave 
sight to the blind. One woman, advised by 
the doctors to prepare for death, after she 
had confessed, asked him to wash his fingers 
and to give her the water to drink. " What 
power is there in my hands ?" he asked. 
'^ Father,'* answered the sick woman, '' do you 
not say holy Mass?" '* You are right,'* he 
said ; **may your faith cure you/* and having 
washed his hands, he gave her the water, and 
immediately she had drank it, she was cured. 
There was a Moorish woman in Cor- 
dova, 104 years old, who had resisted all the 
charitable persuasions of her acquaintances to 
become a Christian. Blessed Francis prayed 
for her continually, and even she could not 
resist his prayers. One night the Blessed 
Virgin, accompanied by F. Francis, appeared 
to her, as she herself afterwards related. In 
the morning she sent for him. He was just 
about to begin Mass, He took off his vest- 



2 54 Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

ments, and turning to those present, said : 
" The business on which I am called is more 
pressing than the Mass ; recommend me to 
God, for I am going to try to gain a soul.** 
When he came to the sick woman he said> 
" Maria della Biancha, do you wish to become 
Christian?" ''Yes," she answered, '* I do/* 
'' I knew that yesterday evening," he said, 
*' and I know also that you have had a visit 
from our Blessed Lady della Biancha.^' He 
then laid his rosary upon the sick old woman 
and sent for the parish priest, who baptized 
her and gave her the name of Maria della Bian- 
cha, in honor of the Blessed Virgin, by whom 
she had been saved. A little afterwards she 
became worse, w^hen he said the prayers for a 
soul departing this life, during which she 
said : " Father Francis ! I am dying." He 
covered her face when she was dead with his 
black cloak, and turning towards the assistants, 
he said: *' You will see something wonderful,'* 
and lifting it he showed them the face of the 
dead woman, which had become marvellousl}^ 
white and beautiful ; thus she was in reality 
as well as in name, '* Maria della Biancha.** 
When he was sick and could not hear the 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 255 

confessions of those who sent for him, he visited 
them in spirit. One day, when he had thus 
been to console one of his penitents, the sick 
man reproached his servants for not having 
saluted the Father on his leaving the house. 
They looked at each other in surprise to see 
if he was in his right mind, and declared that 
they had neither seen nor heard the Father. 
Once he forbade one of his penitents to dis- 
cipline himself on his bare shoulders. This 
man, not liking the prohibition, began one 
night to take the discipline, according to his 
old custom. Just at that moment he heard 
Father Francis call him to the door. He was 
filled with confusion for having been dis- 
covered in an act of disobedience-, but he was 
afterwards astonished to hear that Father 
Francis, owing to sickness, had not left the 
monastery for a single moment that evening. 
One day Blessed Francis ran after a man in 
the street and overtaking him, said : '^Brother, 
where are you going ? " ** Father," answered 
the man, "I am going to take a walk." "Your 
walk is a bad one," was the answer. ** Pull 
out that cord you have hidden in your pocket. 
You have committed a great sin in losing the 



256 Blessed Francis de Posadas, 

respect which you ought to have for your 
mother, but remember that the mercy of God 
is greater than your sin/* He then led the 
man to the church, where he spent three hours 
in preparing him for his confession, which was 
made with great sorrow^ and many resolutions 
of amendment. 

There was a certain nun who, falling sick, 
was given up by the doctors. Father Fran- 
cis found her full of regrets for leaving this 
life ; he said : *' God has warned you several 
times before, by an accident, and in other 
ways, with the hope of correcting you, and 
that is the reason why you are threatened 
with death to-day. Is it not so?" '^ I will 
amend," the sister replied. *' If you will," he 
said, '* I offer life to you in God's name. If 
you live as a good religious should, )^ou will 
live a long time." And God kept the prom- 
ise his servant Francis had made to her in his 
name, for she lived many years more. 

Thus the life of the servant of God passed 
away in preaching, hearing confessions, and 
leading souls to God. At last God called 
him to his reward. The evening before he 
died he sent for the barber to shave his 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 257 

tonsure, and when the man came said to him, 
" I am sick ; please shave me." The next even- 
ing, hearing of the saint's death, he recalled to 
his mind that he had often said to Blessed 
Francis that he would not shave a dead man 
for a whole kingdom, and that the Father had 
answered that he would shave him to the end 
of his life. And he had no doubt that it was 
to hinder him from performing this sad duty 
after death that Blessed Francis was shaved 
about ten days before the usual day. He 
knew the hour when he would leave this 
world, and the kind of death he was to die. 
He said : " I shall die suddenly, and it will be 
soon.*' Having said Mass on the morning of 
September the 20th, 1713, he went into the 
confessional as usual. There w^ere many peo- 
ple in the church, and it w^as remarked that 
he seemed very joyful. To his penitents he 
gave very salutary advice, telling them that it 
was the last they would receive from him. 
'' I must give you a rule of life," he said to 
one, *^ because my infirmities increase, and 
later on I do not know if I shall be able to do 
so." He warned another of a great affront 
he would shortly receive, and counselled him 



258 Blessed Francis de Posadas, 

to bear it patiently. When it happened a few 
months afterwards, this man remembered 
what the Blessed Father had said to him. 
Another penitent, a man of great virtue, 
whom he loved very much, accompanied him 
to the sacristy door. When he left the church 
Father Francis looked at him with tears in his 
eyes, and said one word only, '' Adieu," but 
he remained standing in the doorway. 
When the man reached the middle of the 
Church he turned, and the Father again said, 
"Adieu/* and again a third time as he left 
the church. The priest and the penitent, 
who loved each other so much, saw each 
other for the last time on earth. 

As he entered the hospital a religious asked 
him to console him in some spiritual trouble 
which effected him. Both sat down upon a 
bench, and the sad religious opened his heart 
to the holy priest and obtained peace. At 
table that day he was seized with an attack of 
apoplexy, and lost consciousness. The doc- 
tors giving no hope of his recovery, he 
was absolved and anointed, and the in- 
dulgences of the Dominican Order and the 
Rosary applied to him. Thinking he was 



Blessed Francis cie Posadas, 259 

dying, the fathers sang the *' Credo," a last 
act of faith for the soul which was about to 
appear before its Creator. When they saw 
that he still breathed, they suggested pious 
prayers to him, which he evidently heard and 
understood. At five o'clock his head sank ; and 
again they sang the '' Credo," after which he 
seemed to rest a little. At seven the fathers 
saw that he was on the point of death, and sang 
the '' Credo," amid their tears, a third time, 
during which he calmly died. He was in his 
69th year. 

As soon as he was dead all kissed his feet. 
They divided among themselves all the little 
objects he was accustomed to use ; and his 
habit, which was covered with blood, the 
doctors having bled him, they cut into pieces. 
The Viscount de Miranda obtained a glassful 
of blood, and sent it as a precious relic to his 
wife. Many sick were cured by it. The 
Viscountess remembered that one day, hav- 
ing desired him to give her something as a 
remembrance of him, Father Francis had an- 
swered : *' I will give you the blood of my 
veins some da3\" At the moment of his 
death several persons saw a globe of fire in 



26o Blessed Francis de Posadas. 

the air above the hospital. Many others saw 
a bright star, and said one to the other, 
** Something extraordinary has taken place at 
Cordova ; '' and on hearing of the death of 
Blessed Francis, they ran in crowds to the 
hospital, only to find the doors closed. 

His body was carried the same evening by 
the Fathers to the monastery of Saint Paul, 
followed by the people saying the Rosary. 
Every one tried to touch the bodj^, which sent 
forth a sweet perfume. The face had kept its 
natural beauty, the limbs were yet warm and 
flexible, and from the opened vein flowed a 
stream of blood which was collected and re- 
ligiously preserved. 

Early next morning, by order of the Cathe- 
dral Chapter, the bells of the Cathedral were 
tolled, as if for the death of a Bishop ; the bells 
of all the parish churches and monasteries 
were rung. 

The Bishop of Buenos Ayres, the inquisi- 
tors, canons, the principal religious and 
noblemen all went to kiss the feet of the dead 
saint. The town authorities asked permis- 
sion from the Prior of St.. Paul's to make a 
tomb for him in the cemetery of the Domini- 



Blessed Francis de Posadas. 261 

can Monastery, and it was remarked that to 
do so it became necessary to remove the 
bodies of those very Fathers who had so bit- 
terly opposed his entrance into the Domini- 
can Order. 

At the funeral the clergy, magistrates and 
noblemen assisted, in a body, to pay him this 
last mark of honor. The superiors of the re- 
ligious orders carried the coffin, which, accord- 
ing to Dominican custom, was open. The 
crowd of people was so dense, that it became 
impossible to advance, and the devotion 
shown so great that they tried to steal his 
habit from his body, so that it became neces- 
sary to lock up the body in the sacristy, and 
postpone the burial. The next day, before 
sunrise, he was buried. The authorities of 
the town obtained one key of the coffin, and 
the other was left in the possession of the 
Dominican Fathers. 

After his death miracles were worked in 
answer to prayer made to God through him. 
One in honor of the rosary, his favorite 
prayers, deserves special mention. A cer- 
tain man was at the point of death ; some one 
offered him a rosary, which had touched the 



262 Blessed Francis de Posadas, 

body of the saint He said : *^ This is a new 
idea ; Father Francis was a good Christian, 
but no saint. *' Nevertheless, the rosary was 
hung around his neck, when the dying man 
immediately cried out : *' Take it away, it 
burns me. " ** That is because you have not 
called upon the saint of God with faith," some 
one said to him. *' O God, pardon me ! '' he 
cried out. "O saint of my soul! I believe 
that you are a saint, and a great one, too," 
and in an instant the fire which had burned 
him cooled, and he was cured. 

Blessed Francis was beatified by Pius the 
7th, in 1818. He was the author of several 
works. ''The Triumph of Chastity," ** The 
Life of the Venerable Mother Leonarda," a 
Dominican nun, "• The life of Blessed Chris- 
topher of St. Catharine," founder of the hos- 
pital of Jesus of Nazareth in Cordova, " A 
life of St. Dominic," and " Warnings to the 
Town of Cordova," are the principal literary 
works he has left behind him. 

Prayer, 

Ant. He made an everlasting covenant with 
him, and made him blessed in glory. 



Blessed Francis de Posadas, 26^ 



o 

V. Pray for us, O Blessed Francis, 
R. That we may be worthy of the promises 
of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who didst raise up Blessed Francis, 
Thy confessor, imbued with the sweetness 
of heavenly charity to be an illustrious 
preacher of Thy word, grant through his in- 
tercession that we may be kindled with the 
fire of Thy love, and live ever in Thy charity, 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. 



i^ 




f 



BLESSED BENEDICT THE 
ELEVENTH. 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh, 267 



BLESSED BENEDICT THE 
ELEVENTH. 

July yth. 

NICOLAS BOCCASINA was born in the 
year 1240, at Traviso, a city in the north of 
Italy. It is uncertain what was the rank of 
his parents ; some authors say that his father 
was a shepherd, some that he was a noble, and 
others, with more show of probability, that he 
was a notary. Touron contents himself with 
saying that he can neither refute nor establish 
any of these statements, because there is no an- 
cient author whose opinion on this subject is 
not contradicted by some other author of the 
same century. '' Butthat which is certain,'' he 
says, '^ is that the family of the servant of God, 
whether noble or plebeian, has gained a fame 
from his merits which it could not give him.'* 
His education was intrusted to the care of his 
uncle, the parish priest of Saint Andrew's, 
one of the principal churches of Traviso. He 



2 68 Blessed Benediet the Eleventh, 

was afterwards sent to continue his studies at 
Venice, where he became aware of his voca- 
tion to the religious hfe, and entered the Order 
of Saint Dominic in the year 1254, receiv- 
ing the habit in the convent of Saints John 
and Paul, in that city, being then fourteen 
years of age. He did not change his name 
when he entered religion, and was called 
Brother Nicolas. During his novitiate he 
was very fervent in keeping the rule of the 
Order in its greatest perfection, it being nec- 
essary rather to check his austerities than to 
incite him to penance. After his religious 
profession he began his ecclesiastical studies, 
and soon became remarkable for diligent and 
constant application. Like all the saints of 
the Order, he especially loved the study of 
the Holy Scriptures. There seems little 
doubt, says Touron, that he made part of his 
studies under the care of the Angelic Doctor, 
Saint Thomas Aquinas, during the time in 
which that holy doctor taught at Bologna, 
Rome, and Naples. His humility caused him 
to hide his talents, and made him very un- 
willing to distinguish himself among his 
fellow students, and it would seem as if his 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh, 269 

superiors, by the will of God, allowed him all 
the obscurity he desired. Thus his naturally 
noble character was strengthened by solid 
study, purified by prayer, and chastened by 
conteniplation. The learned Dominican, Ber- 
nard Guidonis, Bishop of Lodeve, saj's that 
Blessed Benedict once said of himself that he 
was fourteen 3'ears old when he became a 
Dominican, that he studied fourteen years, 
taught fourteen years, and passed fourteen 
years in various offices in the Order. iVfter 
he completed his studies he taught in the 
Monasteries of Venice and Bologna, and 
preached with great success. A collection of 
his sermons was published, and may still be 
found in libraries of old Catholic books. He 
also published some learned commentaries 
on the Holy Scriptures. He became Master 
in Theology in the year 1295, and after filling 
several important offices in the Dominican 
Order, was twice elected Provincial of Lom- 
bardy, in 1286 and 1293. But while he held 
all these offices he never neglected to culti- 
vate in himself a spirit of sanctity. As soon 
as his lecture in Theology or Holy Scrip- 
tures was over he hurried to the choir, there 



2 70 Blessed Benedict the Eleventh, 

to chant the praises of God in the company of 
his brothers ; or went into the pulpit to preach 
to the large audiences who loved to hear him. 
He borrowed the hours from the night for 
study, and slept as little as possible. Having 
proved his capabilities as a superior, it is not 
to be wondered at that when the Fathers of 
the Dominican Order met together at a Gen- 
eral Chapter in Strasbourg, in the year 1296, to 
elect a Master General, their choice fell upon 
him, and although nine hundred fathers took 
part in the election, it was unanimous, only 
one dissentient voice, and that was his own. 

He fully answered the expectations formed 
of him ; an example of holiness to all — he was 
at the same time a wise and prudent Supe- 
rior. '^ Always venerable,'' says Bernard Gui- 
domis, ''and worthy of all praise ; a model of 
virtue, a mirror of religion, holy in devotion, 
fervid in zeal, shining in wisdom, pleasing to 
God and man.'' He says that Benedict, dur- 
ing the two and a half years that he gov- 
erned the Order, was a faithful observer of 
the rule, and caused the Fathers to keep it 
rather by example than by exhortations. 
He always travelled on foot, in imitation of 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh, 2 7 1 

our holy Father Saint Dominic, and in- 
creased his already severe penances and mor- 
tifications. 

While he held this office of Master General 
of the Dominican Order, he was charged 
by Pope Boniface the 8th with reconciling 
France and England, and having succeeded 
in his difficult mission, was created Cardinal. 
He was very loath to accept so high a dignity, 
and when he was admitted into the Pope's 
presence said : '' Holy Father, why hav^e you 
put upon me so heavy a load ?*' **God," was 
the answer, *' has reserved a heavier one for 
you ; *' a prophetic insight into the future. 
This was in the year 1298. Although he of- 
ten dissented from the opinions of Boniface, 
and expressed his opinions with perfect 
frankness, the Pope esteemed him very highly, 
admiring him all the more for it ; and soon 
after created him Bishop of Ostia, and Dean 
of the Sacred College of Cardinals, and sent 
him as Legate into Hungary, to calm the dis- 
cord which divided that kingdom. 

The state of the Church at this time was very 
alarming. The Turks, those old enemies of 
Christianity, gradually encroaching upon Eu- 



272 Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 

rope, were already masters of Palestine, and 
only awaited a favorable opportunity to seize 
Constantinople. The Greeks bore a bitter 
hatred to the Catholic Church ; while many 
European countries were a prey to internal 
dissentions and at enmity with the nations 
around them. Pope Boniface the 8th strove to 
unite all the Christian powers, in order to 
withstand the tide of Turkish invasion, and 
sent envoys from Rome to the different 
Christian kings, to pacify enmities among 
themselves, previous to a general attack upon 
the Turks. His motives were misunderstood, 
and his success but insignificant. Philip Le 
Bel, King of France, far from listening to the 
voice of the Pope, accused him of being an 
usurper and heretic, and charged him with 
many crimes. History has cleared his name, 
but his impetuosity of character, and austere 
views, sometimes caused him to push justice 
to its limits, and gained him enemies where 
he should have made friends. He deprived 
the French Universities of the right to confer 
degrees, withdrew from the king a privilege 
he had exercised of appointing to vacant 
benefices, and punished with censures those 



Blessed Benedict the EJeventh. 273 

ecclesiastics who did not go to Rome accord- 
ing to his orders. Angered by all this, 
PhiHp Le Bel convoked the States General, 
which refused to acknowledge the authority 
of Boniface, and appealed from him to a 
General Council, and to a future Pope. 

William Nogaret, his envoy, together 
with Sciarra Colonna, a disaffected Roman 
noble, took the Pope prisoner in his palace 
at Anagni, and kept him in confinement three 
days, after which the inhabitants rescued him. 
Cardinal Boccasina and another Cardinal 
alone remained with the insulted Pontiff, 
while the rest of the Cardinals abandoned him. 
As soon as he was delivered Boniface set out 
for Rome, and died immediately on reaching 
the holy city, October the eleventh, 1303. 
The Cardinals entered into conclave, October 
2 1st, eleven days after his death. This was 
the first time the rule was observed which 
had been established by Celestine the 5th, 
and confirmed by Boniface the 8th, that the 
Cardinals should not enter into conclave until 
nine days after the late Pope's death. The next 
day they elected Cardinal Boccasina Pope. 
He was very unwilling to accept this great 



2 74 Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 

office, and only consented when it was repre- 
sented that it was for the good of the Cath- 
olic Church. He took the name of Benedict, 
the baptismal name of his predecessor, Boni- 
face the 8th, as a token of gratitude to him 
for all the favors and marks of esteem he had 
received from him ; and adopted for his mot- 
to the text, *' lUustra faciem tuam super ser- 
vum tuum," '* Make thy face to shine upon 
thy servant." — Ps. xxx. 17. He was solemnly 
crowned Pope, Sunday, Oct. 27th, 1303. The 
new Pope did not forget his humble origin, 
and on one occasion gave a very striking 
proof of the humility which led him to ac- 
knowledge it. His mother, although very old, 
went to see him at Perugia. When she ar- 
rived, some high-born ladies told her she 
would put him to shame if she appeared in 
her peasant's costume and^gave her a rich and 
handsome dress, in which she went to the 
Pope's palace, and asked to see him. But 
when Benedict heard what had happened he 
w^ould not receive her, saying : *' It is not my 
mother if she is dressed in silk, for my mother 
is a poor woman who does not even know 
what silk is/' When his mother heard this 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh, 275 

Sue took off the costly dress and went to see 
her son in her peasant costume. He tenderly 
embraced her, and said : *' This time it is 
indeed my mother." 

At the time of Benedict's accession, Rome, 
like the rest of Europe, was full of sedition ; 
one of the most powerful Roman families, 
that of the Colonnas, was in open rebellion. 
Two Cardinals of that family, James and 
Peter Colonna, had been degraded by Boniface, 
put under anathema, and all their possessions 
confiscated. Immediately on Benedict's elec- 
tion all dissatisfaction ceased. He pardoned 
the Colonnas, and took away the excommu- 
nication, but did not restore the two rebellious 
Cardinals to their rank, nor gave them their 
confiscated possession. 

He then turned his peaceful policy towards 
those European nations which had incurred 
the enmity of Boniface. He was already 
well knowm to Philip Le Bel, King of France, 
who, while Benedict was Master General of 
the Order, had written to thank him for the 
prominent part he had taken in the canoniza- 
tion of Saint Louis, King of France, his 
grandfather; and in token of gratitude had 



276 Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 

given him a large convent for Dominican 
nuns at Poissy, the birth-place of Saint 
Louis. It was also at his request that he 
had made peace with England. When Philip 
heard of his election to the chair of Saint 
Peter, he wrote a letter to him, full of 
confidence and respect. Benedict answered 
in these words : '* Judge of our care for 
your salvation, and of our tenderness for you 
by the solicitude with which we have 
forestalled you, and by which we have given 
you what you did not ask for, viz., absolution 
from all the censures you have incurred. 
We do not regret having acted thus ; for we 
are the Vicar of him who, in the parable, 
ordered his servants to go into all the by-ways, 
and force guests to enter and to fill his 
house. We have done the same ; we have 
left the faithful sheep that we might search 
for the wanderers, in order to carry them 
home on our shoulder to the flock." The 
Holy Pontiff then begged him to remember 
that Joas, King of Juda, reigned gloriously 
only so long as he followed the advice of 
Joah, the High Priest; but having disregard- 
ed his advice, fell by the sword of his own 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 277 

servants. ''Listen, then/' he continued, "to 
the voice of your father, lend an ear to his 
words, so that God in his goodness may 
deign to strengthen your reign and cover 
you with glory and prosperity in this world/* 

The holy and prudent Pontiff annulled the 
censures imposed on France by his prede- 
cessor, gave back the right of granting 
academic degrees, which had been taken 
away, and showed such a spirit of wise 
conciliation that in a few months everything 
was restored to the state it had been in 
before the lamentable quarrel had arisen. 

He then turned his attention to other 
Christian countries, and pacified them also. 
He put down several abuses in Albania. In 
conjunction with Helena, Queen of Servia, he 
labored for the conversion of her infidel son 
Orose ; removed the interdict from the Kings 
of Naples and Sicily ; reconciled the King of 
Denmark to the Church, absolved him from 
excommunication and removed the interdict 
from his kingdom ; pacified Tuscany ; made 
peace between Venice and Padua ; and all 
this in the space of a few months. 

But he had not forgotten the danger the 



278 Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 

Church was in from its most powerful enemies, 
the Turks. The Kings of Tartary, having 
been converted by the Dominican and Fran- 
ciscan missionaries, had taken possession of 
part of Palestine, but not being able to 
retain what they had acquired, applied to the 
Pope for aid. 

Benedict, therefore, after restoring peace to 
Europe, endeavored to organize a general- 
crusade against the Ottoman power. 

The Pope never forgot that he was a son of 
Saint Dominic, that it was in the retirement of 
the Dominican cloister that his character had 
been formed, and that all he had, he owed 
to his early training in sweet and chasten- 
ing monastic discipline. He did not prove 
ungrateful, and in many ways showed his 
gratitude to his Order. Soon after his eleva- 
tion to the papal throne he wrote a letter to 
all the Dominicans throughout the Christian 
world, recommending himself to their pious 
prayers. But he soon gave them a more 
substantial proof of his affection. Boniface 
the Eighth, his predecessor, had thought it 
necessary to restrain the rights and privileges 
of the mendicant orders. Benedict restored 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 279 

them, careless of what blame it might seem 
to put upon Boniface's memory. Although^ 
the whole policy of the Pope had been one of 
reconciliation and peace, yet he could not 
allow the outrage which Boniface had suffered 
at Anagni to go unpunished, and issued a 
Bull against William of Nogaret and Sciarra 
Colonna, citing them to appear in person 
before him, which if they did not do he 
warned them they would be condemned by 
default. They did not listen to the Pope, 
upon which it would seem that God himself 
took vengeance upon them. The city of 
Anagni gradually declined, until in 1526 it 
was a heap of ruins. The three sons of Philip 
Le Bel all proved to be childless and 
succeeded each other as kings of France, 
within a space of fourteen years, leaving the 
French throne to the posterity of his brother, 
Charles de Valois, who had ever been the 
firm friend of Boniface. Rome, so ungrateful 
to the Popes, was soon abandoned by them 
for Avignon, and in their absence became 
almost a deserted city. 

The few months that Benedict had sat on 
Saint Peter's chair promised that he would be 



2 8o Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 

one of the most glorious pontiffs that had 
ruled the Church ; but after only eight 
months and a few days God called him to his 
reward. He died at Perugia, July 7th, 1304, 
in his sixty-third year. A strong suspicion 
was entertained that he had been poisoned. 
According to Ferreto of Vincenza, a contem- 
porary historian, Philip Le Bel bribed some 
of the Pope's attendants to mix poison with 
his food, and the Pope having suffered eight 
days' torment from the poison, which ate 
away his entrails, died in great pain. 

His funeral was one of those touching testi- 
monies of love, which the poor show to those 
who have been their benefactors. They re- 
membered his kindness, charity, and tender 
care for their welfare, and knowing that they 
had lost a true friend, they followed his body 
to the tomb in great numbers. He was buried, 
according to his own desire, in the Church of 
St. Dominic at Perugia, and many miracles 
were worked at his tomb. 

The Pontificate of Benedict nth was very 
short, but it was one of the most glorious, if 
we consider his great virtues, his wisdom and 
moderation, which restored peace to the 



Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 281 

Christian world, and the burning zeal he 
always showed for the salvation of souls. A 
lover and advocate of peace, he seems to have 
been placed upon the throne of Peter to 
establish it throughout the world, and when 
this, his sublime mission, was fulfilled, to have 
been quickly taken from it, to enjoy his glori- 
ous reward in the enjoyment of peace eternal. 

Unfeignedly humble in the midst of honors 
such as none but Christ's Vicar upon earth 
could receive, he sincerely despised them, and 
looked upon them as mere passing dreams, 
unworthy of his serious attention, and loved 
rather to use the power and influence his 
exalted state gave him for the service of the 
poor and needy. 

He continued all tue practices of mortifica- 
tion and penance he had learned and practised 
in the Dominican cloister : he fasted often, and 
prayed and meditated in the long hours of the 
night, while the rest of mankind was asleep. 

Pope Clement 12th authorized his cultus, in 
the year 1736, and allowed his feast to be kept 
in the dioceses of Treviso and Perugia, and by 
the Dominican Order throughout the world. 
The sons of St. Dominic keep his feast July 7th. 



282 Blessed Benedict the Eleventh. 

Prayer. 

Ant. This saint is worthy to be had in re- 
membrance by men, for he hath now passed 
to the joys of the angels. 
V. Pray for us, O Blessed Benedict, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who by the grace of Thy benedic- 
tion didst raise Blessed Benedict, Thy chief 
Bishop, to heaven, sanctify Thy people, we 
beseech Thee, with a new benediction of Thy 
grace, and through his prayers and merits, 
defend us by Thy power from all the evils that 
threaten us. Through Christ our Lord. 
Amen, 



BLESSED SIMON BALLACHI 



Blessed Simon Ballachi. 285 



BLESSED SIMON BALLACHI. 

November 3. 

THE little town of San Archangelo, near 
Rimini, in Romagna, was Blessed Simon's 
birth-place. He was born about the middle 
of the thirteenth century, and at the age of 
twenty-seven, having learned the vanity of 
mere human pleasures, asked to be admitted 
into the Order of Friar Preachers, in the 
monastery at Rimini. Although he was the 
son of a nobleman, and the nephew of the 
Dominican Bishop of Rimini, he only begged 
the habit of a lay brother ; moved to do so 
by a wish to imitate the humility of our 
Blessed Lord, who concealing His Godhead, 
became a little child, and the son of the 
humble virgin of Nazareth. He is also said 
to have had a brother, a Dominican priest, 
who after serving God worthily for thirty-five 
years, died a holy death, leaving a memory 
fragrant with the odor of many virtues, 



286 Blessed Simon Ballaehi. 

Having received the habit, he began at once 
to acquire the spirit of a true lay brother of 
the Dominican Order, and soon became re- 
markable for his holiness. He forgot his 
rank in the world as completely as if he had 
never known it ; he was never seen idle, never 
indulged himself in anything, however inno- 
cent it might be in itself, but worked the 
whole of the day, cheerfully and heartily, and 
when he had a few spare moments, spent them 
in prayer or meditation. 

Although his love for pra37er was very 
remarkable, he strove, first of all, to cultivate a 
habit of working, looking upon manual labor 
as his principal duty. It was his delight to 
work in the garden, which was put under his 
care. He undertook the most disagreeable 
services in the monastery, so that when a 
brother was appointed to any duty repugnant 
to human nature, he often found that the 
Blessed Brother Simon had forestalled him, 
and rid him of the unpleasant work. 

So strictly did he fast that one wonders how 
he could undergo his severe bodily labors. 
He was known to have passed the whole of the 
forty days of Lent on bread and water, for five 



Blessed Simon Ballachi, 287 

years. But his obedience was such, that when 
the Prior told him he would render himself 
useless if he continued this penance, and that he 
ran the danger of being a burden instead of a 
help to the community, at once, without a word, 
he submitted. He always slept upon a board, 
and when he recalled the sins of his youth, 
took the discipline so vigorously, and for so 
long a time, that his blood fell upon the 
ground all around him. For twenty years he 
disciplined himself several times a week with 
a heavy iron chain. 

Leading thus a life of innocence and mor- 
tification, dear to God and the wonder of all 
who knew him, it is only to be expected that 
the devil, the enemy of all the friends and ser- 
vants of God, waxed wroth against him, and. 
tried to rob him of the merits he had ac- 
quired. He made use of all the subtlety of 
his angelic, but fallen nature to deceive the 
humble Brother. Sometimes he beat him, 
like he had beaten Saint Anthon3% sometimes 
he threw dust in his e3^es, or crammed his 
mouth with filth to anger him, and at other 
times he threw him violently against the hard 
ground or dashed him against the corners of 



288 Blessed Simon Ballachi, 

the furniture to tire out his patience. He 
never once succeeded. He could not draw 
the saint from the sweet spirit of prayer, 
which gave him so unconquerable a power 
against his most dangerous temptations. 

Blessed Simon had chosen the lowly and 
hidden state of a religious lay brother in his 
great humility of heart, not thinking himself 
holy enough to aspire to the priesthood and 
the care of souls ; but his heart burned with 
as ardent a zeal for the honor of God and the 
salvation of sinners as burned in the hearts of 
the most zealous apostles. He knew that, 
although the lay brother is not engaged in 
working for the good of souls, like a priest, 
who, in his duties as preacher and confessor, 
gathers corn into the stores of his Master, 
yet he never forgot, that by working and 
attending to the wants of priests, he had a 
share, and not a small one, in all their labors 
for the salvation of souls. But he did more 
than this ; he went out at times into the 
streets and lanes of Rimini, crucifix in hand, 
and gathered a group of little children around 
him, to teach them the rudiments of Chris- 
tian doctrine. He sought out sinners, gently 



Blessed Simon Ballacki. 289 

reproved them for their vices and forgetful- 
ness of God, and having softened their hearts 
by his earnest words, brought them back to 
God. His words were very simple and 
unstudied, but the holiness of his life, and 
much more so the merit of the penances and 
bloody disciplines which he offered to God 
for the conversion of sinners, gave them a 
force which softened the stoniest hearts. 
Thus, although he was but a lay brother, he 
gained the glory of the apostolate, and was 
as true and fervent a son of the apostolic 
Dominic, the founder of the Order of Preach- 
ers, as any of his most famous apostles. 

He was very devout to Jesus in the Blessed 
Sacrament of the altar, and exceedingly 
zealous for the cleanliness and beauty of 
everything used in the service of the Church, 
one of the most certain marks of a truly God- 
loving soul. Old or soiled vestments he could 
never endure, and took great pains to clean 
and beautify all the ornaments of the Church. 

He was gifted with the prophetical spirit, 
and honored by God, while yet in this life, 
with the power of working miracles. There 
was a certain doctor of medicine living in 



290 Blessed Simon Ballachi. 

Rimini, who became seriously sick. Sickness 
and entire loss of appetite having lasted three 
days, he sent for Brother Simon, who touched 
him with his hand, and health and appetite 
were immediately restored to him. 

To the chaste Saint, St. John the Evan- 
gelist, he was particularly devout. He was 
accustomed to pray often before the statue 
of this saint in the church, and every time he 
prostrated before the statue in prayer a most 
delicious perfume was noticed by all around. 
In many other ways God manifested the 
holiness of this humble soul. One day, as he 
was praying, an angel, bright with the beauty 
of heaven, appeared, and sprinkling him with 
holy water, told him to fear the temptations 
and wiles of the devil no longer, for God was 
with him, and would always give him the 
victory. 

Blessed Simon, having reached the age of 
fifty-seven years, became stone-blind, on ac- 
count of the many tears he shed for his sins 
and for the conversion of sinners. But he 
was not at all discouraged, and continued to 
lead a life of intimate union with God in 
prayer and contemplation. At last his many 



Blessed Simon Ballachi. 291 

infirmities caused him to take to bed, where 
bearing all his trials with untiring patience, 
he was often visited by our Blessed Lord, 
surrounded with light. Saint Dominic and 
Saint Peter also appeared to him, telling him 
that they never ceased to pray to God for 
him. One day, as he was suffering from a 
very painful headache, St. Catherine the 
Martyr came to console him, and taking his 
right hand in hers, she touched his head, say- 
ing : ^* It is I, Catherine, whom you have so 
often called to your aid, and whom you have 
honored so much," and at once the pain 
ceased. 

One day as the blind old man lay on his 
bed, trembling with fear for the account he 
must speedily render of his life to God, he 
heard a soft, sweet voice in the air, which 
said : " O Brother Simon, do not fear, for God 
is with thee and thou hast found favor in 
his sight.'* When the Fathers were thinking 
of building a new monastery in Rimini, in 
honor of the holy Mother of God, she deigned 
to appear to Blessed Simon, attended by 
Saint Catherine the Martyr, to tell him that 
the intention was pleasing to God. 



292 Blessed Simon Ballachi. 

At last, Blessed Simon died, full of years 
and weighed down with infirmities, laden 
with good works and the merits of a long 
and holy life. His soul left his body and 
fled to his Creator on the third of November, 
1 3 19. The crowd of people that assembled 
at the monastery as soon as his death was 
known, was so great that he could not be 
buried at once, as the Dominican Rule pre- 
scribes. His body was placed upon a bier, 
and laid in the church. His habit soon dis- 
appeared, every one cutting oflFa piece for a 
precious relic and the Fathers were obliged 
to clothe his body in another habit. On the 
third day after his death he was buried in the 
Dominican Church at Rimini. 

His relics have often been translated, the 
last time in 1817, when they were placed in a 
chapel in the collegiate church at San Arch- 
angelo, his native town. His cultus was 
approved by Pope Pius the Seventh, who 
granted his feast and office to the whole 
Dominican Order, and to the diocese of Ri- 
mini. 



Blessed Simon Bullae hi. 293 

Prayer. 

Ant. Let your loins be girt, and lamps be 

burning in your hands. 
V. Pray for us, O Blessed Simon, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 

promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who didst adorn Blessed Simon, 
Thy Confessor, with constant diligence in 
prayer, together with many other virtues, 
and a singular prerogative of humility, grant 
that we may so imitate him, that despising 
all the things of this world, we may seek 
Thee alone here, and hereafter attain the 
rewards promised in heaven to the humble. 
Through Christ our Lord. Amen, 




BLESSED ALBERT OF BERGAMO. 



Blessed A Ibert of Bergamo, 297 



BLESSED ALBERT OF BERGAMO. 

May 13. 

THE life of this holy man teaches us that 
we can rise to a great height of sanctity, 
even while following our ordinary occupations; 
and that to be a saint it is not necessary to 
dwell in the cloister, but that all may attain 
holiness in whatever condition of life. 

Blessed Albert was born at Villa-d-Ogna, 
near Bergamo. The exact date of his birth 
is unknown. He was piously educated, and 
was remarkable, even in his earliest years, for 
his natural goodness, and for his love of God. 
He fasted three times a week when he was 
only seven years of age, loved to hear Holy 
Mass, and to assist at all the services of the 
Church. He also began to practise acts of 
charity about the same age, and was often 
known to give away his own food to the poor. 
His father and mother, who were poor, put 
him to work in the fields, and while he tilled 



298 Blessed Albei't of Bergamo. 

the ground he fed his soul with pious thoughts, 
and meditated upon holy things, and thus 
made very remarkable progress in Christian 
virtue. At a suitable age he married, but 
did not on that account lead a less holy life, 
nor diminish the alms he was accustomed to 
give to the poor, although his wife often 
reproached him for giving away more than 
he could afford. He listened patiently to her 
complaints, but ceased not to succor those 
who needed his help. He fed the hungry, 
and many were the poor orphans and 
pilgrims who received bounty from him. 
His charity was often rewarded by God with 
miracles : his store of provisions having been 
miraculously increased several times, so that 
while he assisted others in their necessities he 
himself did not want. 

Notwithstanding this Divine assistance, his 
patience and confidence in God were severely 
tried. Some of his neighbors, w^ho were rich 
and powerful, claimed the fields which he 
had inherited from his father, and succeeded 
in depriving him of them, thereby reducing 
him to a state of such poverty that he was 
forced to seek employment from others, 



Blessed Albert of Bergamo. 299 

instead of cultivating his own land. Yet his 
charity and love for the poor were so strong 
that he found means to help them, and at the 
same time to provide for his own necessities. 

He made two pilgrimages, one to Rome, 
and another to the shrine of Saint James at 
Compostella. On his journey he spread 
abroad the good odor of Christ, and wherever 
he passed, left behind him a reputation for 
holiness, especially for faith, simplicity, and 
burning zeal for the honor and glory of God. 
He worked his way as he went along, and 
miracles were again vouchsafed him by God. 

He was once employed by a farmer to 
gather in the hay. Being anxious to gain 
enough to enable him to continue his pilgrim- 
age, he worked much faster and better than his 
fellow-laborers. This aroused their jealousy, 
and to revenge themselves upon him, by 
hindering him in his work, they hid an iron 
anvil in the grass to turn the edge of his 
scythe, and thus to force him to rest awhile. 
Blessed Albert, quite unconscious of the 
hidden anvil, went on with his work, but 
when he came across it his scythe cut it in 
two, and he continued his work, to the aston- 



y' 



300 Blessed Albert of Bergamo. 

ishment and confusion of his fellow-laborers, 
who became much ashamed of their jealousy, 
and humbly asked his pardon for the injury 
they had attempted to do him. 

As he was returning from his pilgrimage 
he found the river Po so swollen with the 
rain that it was impossible to cross it. Full 
of simple trust in God, he made the sign of 
the cross over the waters, and spreading his 
cloak upon them, walked to the other side in 
perfect safety. Some hermits, who lived 
near the river, ran to question him, but he 
was silent, and went on his way, humbly 
rendering thanks to God. 

This holy man became a member of the 
Third Order of Saint Dominic. He died at 
Cremona, May 7, 1 279. He devoutly prepared 
himself for death, by confessing his sins, and 
it is said when the priest carried the Most 
Blessed Sacrament to him a beautiful white 
dove descended from heaven, and took the 
Sacred Host -in its beak and placed it on the 
tongue of the dying man. All the bells 
of the churches in the city rang by them- 
selves when his happy soul went to meet its 
Creator, No human hand dug his grave in 



Blessed Albert of Bergamo. 301 

the church of Saint Matthias, the angels 
coming from heaven to perform that pious 
work themselves. 

Many miracles proved his sanctity, and he 
became very popular in Cremona. An altar 
was erected in the Church of St. Matthias, 
and a feast kept in his honor. In the year 
1389 it was decreed that two large wax 
candles should be offered at his altar, at the 
expense of the city, and that a confraternity 
of laborers, which had been placed under his 
patronage, should keep his feast with great 
solemnity, and should distribute dowries to 
virtuous maidens belonging to the confrater- 
nity. 

According to one author he was solemnly 
canonized by Pope John XXL, but as this 
afterwards seemed doubtful, his cultus was 
reconfirmed by Benedict XIV., May 9th, 
1549. One of his arms was given to his 
native town of Ogna, where it is still piously 
venerated. 

Prayer. 

Ant. I will liken him to a wise man who 
built his house upon a rock. 



302 Blessed Albert of Bergamo. 

V. Pray for us, O Blessed Albert, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who wast pleased that Blessed 
Albert, Thy Confessor, should shine with 
singular sanctity in a lowly condition of life, 
grant that we may so tread in his footsteps 
as to be worthy to obtain his rewards. 
Through Christ our Lord, 




BLESSED JAMES OF BEVAGNA. 



Blessed James of Bevagna. 305 



BLESSED JAMES OF BEVAGNA. 

August 23^. . 

IT must ever be a mattqr of regret that the 
original manuscripts of the Life of this holy 
servant of God have been lost ; for the little 
which has been handed down to us is sufficient 
to show how holy he must have been. 

In the year 1377, three-quarters of a cen- 
tury after his death, the town of Bevagna 
was taken by Conrad Trincius and put to 
the flames, when the monastery which Blessed 
James had built, and where he died, was 
destroyed with all it contained ; and thus his 
Life, which had been written and preserved 
in the monastery archives, was lost. In the 
following year, however, a Dominican 
Father, Bonaventure Camasseus, set himself 
to re-write it from tradition, and from what 
he himself remembered to have heard when 
it was read. 

Blessed James was born in the year 1220, 



^ 



06 Blessed James of Bevagna. 



in the town of Bevagna, in Umbria. His 
father, John Blanchoni, and his mother Vanna, 
were of high rank, and distinguished for 
their genuine piety. At his birth, says an old 
writer, various wonders appeared in the 
heavens, for on the night in which he was 
born three moons were visible, in each of 
which the figure of a Friar Preacher was 
seen. In the day time, also, when the sun was 
shining, they were discernible for a long time, 
and a little boy began to cry out in the 
streets of the town, " To the schools, to 
the schools," and when questioned what he 
meant, said: " The Masters whom the world 
wishes to hear have come into the world/* 
Now, about this time were born St. Thomas 
Aquinas, the Angel of the Schools, Blessed 
Ambrose of Sienna, and Blessed James of 
Bevagna. Many other signs were also given 
of his holiness : his mother, brother, and 
another person had prophetical visions of the 
child's future. 

It was no wonder, then, that this child of 
God was educated with more than ordinary 
care. His parents, who were filled with the 
love of God and fear of his judgments, knew 



Blessed James of Bevagna, 307 

well that a pious education is the best means 
to ensure happiness in this world as well as in 
the next, and they were also taught by many 
wonderful signs that it was necessary to give 
especial attention to his education. His 
youthful years were passed in happy inno- 
cence, and in the exercise of Christian virtues. 
In due time he was sent to school, and in his 
studies he made rapid progress. 

When he was sixteen years old it happened 
that two Fathers of the Dominican Order 
came from the neighboring town of Spoleto, 
to preach the Lent in Bevagna. The pious 
youth went to hear them, and confessed to 
one of them, Father Peter by name. On 
Holy Thursday, when he was thanking Our 
Blessed Lord, who had come to dwell in his 
breast in Holy Communion, it occurred to 
him to open his Psalter, when his eyes fell 
upon these words : ^* Set before me a law, the 
way of Thy justifications, O Lord, and I will 
seek after it." — Psalm cxviii. 33. And when 
he read this he was suddenly inspired by God 
to renounce the pleasures of this world, and 
to enter the Dominican Order. He told 
Father Peter his desire. The Father said : 



3o8 Blessed James of Bevagna 

'' Very good, my child ; fast on bread and 
water to-morrow and we shall see if God 
will show anything to thee ; spend the night 
in prayer, that your pious resolution may be 
confirmed by him/' During the night Saint 
Dominic appeared to him, and said : ** My 
son, carry out what thou hast in th}^ mind, 
for I have chosen thee by command of the 
Lord, and will always be with thee/* He 
told this to Father Peter, and said he was 
fully prepared to make the sacrifice of him- 
self to God in holy religion. After Easter 
he went to the Dominican monastery at 
Spoleto, and was joyfully received by the 
Fathers, and clothed in the Dominican habit. 
His father and mother, although pious, 
made an effort to hinder him, but after awhile, 
overcoming their natural repugnance to lose 
their beloved son, and fearing to oppose the 
holy will of God, made a willing offering of 
him to God. 

He passed through his novitiate very 
fervently. He quickly subdued his passions 
and inclinations, learned to despise all earthly 
delights and honors, rose to a great height 
of virtue, and loved much to pray and medi- 



Blessed James of Bevagna, 309 

tate, was never known to be sad or cast 
down, and with all his heart loved and 
practised the evangelical virtues of poverty, 
obedience and chastity. He was distinguished 
for study of the Holy Scriptures, which he 
carefully and devoutly read every day. 

After his profession, he was sent to study 
at the monastery at Perugia. He learned 
everything necessary for his priestly labors 
in a very short time. During his studies he 
was very modest, and as humble as in his 
novitiate. His desire to walk in the steps of 
Saint Dominic led him to increase his 
penances, and in the night to lengthen his 
prayers. The time he thus snatched from 
sleep he passed before the altars, to obtain 
from the Father of mercies grace to labor 
efficiently for his own perfection, and for the 
salvation of souls. His superiors sometimes 
allowed him to add to the rigor of the Rule, 
because the spirit of the Lord worked in 
him so visibly, and his bodily strength 
seemed to increase just in proportion as he 
spared himself the less. 

At the age of twenty-five he began to 
preach, thus following his particular attrac- 



3 lo Blessed James of Bevagna. 

tion, which led him to labor for the increase 
of God's kingdom in the hearts of men. He 
always regarded preaching as the principal 
duty of the Dominican Order. It was the 
work of his life, although at several times he 
was occupied in teaching philosophy and 
theology, and was many times Prior in 
various convents. 

Civil war had desolated the provinces and 
nearly all the cities of Italy. Blessed James 
viewed these calamities as a scourge with 
which God punished the sins of the people, 
and did not content himself with preaching 
penances alone, but likewise offered himself 
as a voluntary victim to divine justice. He 
practised most severe mortifications to appease 
the anger of God, and to draw down his 
mercy upon those sinners who seemed to 
despise him. 

The Emperor Frederick the Second, who 
had been deposed by the first Council of 
L)^ons, entered the States of the Church 
with an arm}^ and wreaked his vengeance 
more especially upon those towns which had 
stood firm by the Pope. Bevagna, in partic- 
ular, felt his anger. He destroyed its walls 



Blessed James of Bevagna, 3 1 1 

and sowed dissensions among its citizens, so 
that they seemed to wish to destroy all that 
he had spared. Those who remained faithful 
to the Holy See had not only to fight against 
enemies without, but found their own fellow- 
citizens their most deadly foes. In the midst 
of these misfortunes, heretics propagated 
their false doctrines and morals unopposed. 
Contempt of public laws seemed to accustom 
men to despise religion, and to trample under 
foot everything the most sacred. 

The disciple of Christ, Blessed James, 
could not see the deplorable state of his 
native town with indifference ; but the loss of 
souls grieved him more than temporal mis-? 
fortunes. The fame of his virtues and his 
fervent sermons caused the most influential 
citizens to seek his advice, and in a short 
time he succeeded in reuniting those who 
had been at variance, persuaded them to 
league together against the enemies of their 
town and of religion. 

Among the false religions by which Italy 
was then afflicted, that of the Nicolites, or 
Fratricelli, v/as perhaps the most dangerous. 
The Popes took the greatest precautions 



3 1 2 Blessed James of Bevagna. 

against this error, but its followers still con- 
tinued to disseminate the poison. This in- 
famous sect, which violated the sanctity of 
marriage, and set at naught all laws of mod- 
esty, had already introduced itself into Um- 
bria, and the inhabitants of Bevagna were 
infected by its doctrines. 

Blessed James attacked the Nicolites pub- 
licly, and made many conversions. But he 
could not think he had completed his work 
as long as the leader of these deluded men 
continued in his errors. His name was Orti- 
nelli. He went from town to town, preaching 
in secret, and because his doctrine favored all 
the corrupt desires of the flesh, and pandered 
to men*s evil passions, he gained many dis- 
ciples. He was a rich and powerful man, 
but secretly feared Blessed James, and al- 
ways avoided him. Our saint, on the con- 
trary, ardently desired to see him, with the 
hope of convincing him of his error, and, by 
the help of God's grace, to win him back to the 
bosom of God's holy Church ; or, if he failed 
in this, at least to confound him publicly, so 
that his confusion might open the eyes of those 
who had been perverted by his preaching. 



Blessed James of Bevagna, 3 1 3 

It happened according to his wishes, and 
beyond his expectations ; for having learned, 
while away preaching a mission, that Orti- 
nelli had appeared in the town of Bevagna, 
he returned there with all speed, and at last 
found the long sought far opportunity. 
Blessed James proposed a public discussion, 
w^hich Ortinelli accepted. The most learned 
men of the town w^ere the judges. Ortinelli 
promised, if he w^as convinced by Blessed 
James, not only to abandon his doctrines, 
but also to make a public reparation for all 
the evil he had caused, and to ask pardon and 
reconciliation with the Church. The saint 
on his part promised that he would at once 
recognize him as a true Catholic, if he did 
not show him clearly that his doctrines were 
no other than an ancient heresy, condemned 
by Jesus Christ, his apostles, and anathema- 
tized by the Church. The dispute was not 
long; nor was Ortinelli's defeat doubtful. 
Happily he had the courage and honesty to 
fulfil his promise. Several of his disciples 
followed his example, made a public abjura- 
tion of their heresy, and the sect became 
extinct shortly afterwards. 



314 Blessed James of Bevagna, 

Everything which affected the glory of 
God, or the salvation of souls, was the object 
of Blessed James's zeal. But it led him chief- 
ly to preserve and re-estabhsh purity of faith 
and morals, in that part of Italy in which he 
had been born. He completely suppressed 
several superstitious customs, which had 
crept in among the inhabitants of Bevagna, 
and he resolved to build a monastery of his 
Order there. Friends and relatives warmly 
entered into his views, but after the severe 
losses they had suffered in the late wars, could 
not give all that was required to build a large 
monastery and church. His pious mother, 
and some of the citizens, could furnish but a 
small sum ; sufficient only to purchase an 
unpretending house near the Church of St. 
George the Martyr, which church was soon 
after ceded to him, with its revenues, by the 
Chapter of Spoleto, to whom it had belonged. 

Such was the beginning of what was after- 
wards a large monastery. He obtained sev- 
eral good Fathers, who were the companions 
of his labors in dedicating their lives and tal- 
ents to the w^ork of combating heresy and 
vice, and working hard to restore the practices 



Blessed James oj Bevagna. 3 1 5 

of Christian piety among the inhabitants of 
the town. This community was a model of 
the most exact regularity, a school of fervent 
penance, and the home of a number of self- 
sacrificing apostles. 

After founding his own monastery, Blessed 
James wished to estabhsh a community of 
nuns in Bevagna. There was a holy widow 
in the town, called Lucia, rich in the goods of 
this world. She consulted him as to the best 
way of using her riches, having no relations in 
need of it. He answered that it would be a 
work very pleasing to God. and most bene- 
ficial to her fellow-townsmen, if she founded a 
convent of nuns. His advice was followed, 
and she entered the community herself. It 
was under the rule of St. Benedict. 

Blessed James was Prior in various monas- 
teries, and always filled that office with pru- 
dence and firmness. If his words were all- 
powerful to animate the religious to virtue, 
and to the exercise of religious observance, the 
example of his own life was yet more edifying. 
He scarcely slept, chastised his body three 
times every night with rude disciplines, and 
wore an iron chain round his waist, which en- 



3 1 6 Blessed James of Bevagna, 

tered so deep into his flesh that it was after- 
wards impossible to draw it out. He fasted 
on bread and water on Fridays, and on other 
days his food was the poorest in the monas- 
tery. 

There was nothing cold or repulsive about 
his piety. Austere to himself, but loving and 
gentle to others, ever cheerful and joyful 
in his conversations, warm-hearted, full of 
affection for every one. The following anec- 
dote shows us how merry he could be, even 
when he thought it necessary to administer a 
reproof. One day, going from Spoleto to 
Bevagna, he was received in the house of a 
peasant at Berotti, where the Dominican Fa- 
thers, passing that way, were accustomed to 
seek hospitality. In the evening this man 
returned from his work in the fields, much 
fatigued, and sitting at the fire with his sons 
and daughters, of whom he had many, he 
saw Father James and his companions, stand- 
ing a little distance from the fire, to whom he 
said : *' Reverend Father, I have heard that 
you know everything, and can do all things. 
I wish you to teach me something, viz., what 
I must do so that I and my family, and also 



Blessed James of Bevagna. 3 1 7 

the strangers who come here sometimes, may 
all be able to stand around the fire, for in cold 
weather strangers will never give way to any- 
body. 

Blessed James laughing, said: ^' What you ask 
pleases me much. Have you any vine stubble 
or twigs." The man said that he had. Then 
said Blessed James, " Bring me three or four 
bundles of them." When brought he put 
them on the fire, which flamed up brightly, so 
that all were obliged to draw away from it on 
account of the heat. Then Blessed James 
said : " Let us all sit down around the fire ; 
there is room for all, for when the fire is large 
it warms those who are a long way off, which 
a little fire cannot do." But the man had ex- 
pected a miracle, and said : " I knew all that 
well enough, and looked for something more 
from you." Blessed James then said: ^' If you 
knew that^ why did you not doit? But there 
is another means which will prevent your 
children from needing to sit at the fire ; it is to 
give them thick shoes, and to put warm cloth- 
ing on their backs. We must not ask miracles 
when nature can give us what we need," and 
then taking occasion from this little incident, 
preached to them the Word of God. 



3 1 8 Blessed James of Bevagna. 

There is no language to express the per- 
fection of his purity, which was more than 
virginal. His humility, which appeared in 
all his other virtues, seemed almost to run to 
excess. The innocence of his life, the rigor 
of his penances, and his good works, far from 
causing any pride in him, increased still more 
the fear of God in his heart, and he often 
trembled lest he should be numbered among 
the reprobate. 

God gave him the power of working many 
miracles. Andrew Blanchoni, his eldest bro- 
ther, was miraculously delivered from prison 
by his prayers, when he had been taken in 
battle and condemned to death. 

Many sick and dying were suddenly cured 
by invoking his name, or by the water in 
which he had washed his hands. Bread and 
wine increased in his hands for the support 
of the workmen engaged in building his mon^ 
astery, and oil, which he had blessed, cured 
many bodily diseases. 

He once asked his mother to give him some 
money to buy clothes, and having obtained 
it he went to Perugia, and there purchased a 
large crucifix and a statue of the Blessed 



Blessed James of Bevagna. 3 1 9 

Virgin with the money. When he put this 
crucifix in the church at Bevagna, his mother 
said to him : '* Why hast thou told me a lie ? 
You asked for money to buy clothes, and 
have bought a crucifix instead.'* " My dear 
mother/' he said, *Mtwasnota lie, for Christ 
is our clothing, as said the Apostle, * let us 
put on our Lord Jesus Christ.' " 

Now, when he was praying one day before 
this crucifix, he began to fear for his salvation 
and said: *' O Lord Jesus Christ, w^ho hast 
deigned to clothe Thyself with the covering 
of our mortality, I beseech the fulness of Thy 
Infinite Majesty at least to reveal, and to 
deign to show me by some sure sign whether 
the flowing of Thy precious Blood will be the 
cause of my salvation, that I may be among 
Thy elect and Thy predestined ones." 

Then our Lord spoke to him from the cross 
and said: " May this Blood be a sign to thee." 
And immediately blood and water flowed frjfcm 
the side of the figure on the cross, and fell 
on his face and habit. Three drops trickled 
down upon his lips, and tasted so sweet and 
wxre so fragrant, that an earnest yearning to 
be dissolved and to be with Christ took pos- 
session of his soul. 



320 Blessed James of Bevagna. 

The end of his life approaching, our Divine 
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, accompanied 
by his holy Mother Mary, Saint Dominic, 
and Saint George, to whom he had a special 
devotion, appeared to him on the feast of the 
Assumption. Our Lord said: ^* Put your 
house in order, for we shall come to lead you 
to the happiness of heaven. I have already 
sprinkled you with my blood for a sign of 
your predestination, and because you have 
given the price of your clothes for my image 
and for an image of my Mother, because you 
have clothed yourself with the habit of Saint 
Dominic, and enlarged the Church of Saint 
George, therefore we will be present at your 
death." Then the vision faded away, leaving 
Blessed James full of sweet consolation. 

The octave day of the Assumption having 
come. Blessed James called the Brothers 
together, and exhorted them to live for God 
alone, in the constant exercise of fervent 
prayer, in charity towards all men, and in 
great humility. Then he received Extreme 
Unction, and said to the Brothers: ** I thirst, 
my dear Brothers, I thirst." And then, 
■* Go,'' he said to one who stood near, "and 



Blessed James of Bevagna. 321 

draw forth water from the well of the Church, 
for I wish to drink with the Brothers for the 
last time, for I shall drink no more with 
them/' 

When the water was before him he blessed 
it with these words : " May the Giver of all 
good things bless the drink of his servants/' 
and immediately it was turned into good red 
wine. All who stood around saw the miracle. 
But not being sufficient for all, he sent for 
more, a second and a third time, and each 
time the miracle was repeated. When all 
had drank, many religious and secular per- 
sons being present, he said : ** This miracle 
was not worked for me, but for you, that you 
may know that the arm of the Lord is not 
shortened." And afterwards he said to them : 
*^ Farewell, my dearest Brothers, farewell in 
the Lord. Behold ! I see my patron Saints, 
and the Patron Saint of this monastery, 
coming for me. I see Our Divine Lord, 
Mary, my dearest Mother, and the Blessed 
St. Dominic, and St. George, according to 
their promise." And raising his eyes to 
heaven he said : '' I thank Thee, Lord Jesus 
Christ, because Thou hast deigned to come to 



32 2 Blessed James of Bevagiia. 

Thy servant with these holy Saints, accord- 
ing to Thy word." And having said this, he 
slept in the Lord. 

Now, as the Brothers were making the 
customary recommendation of the departed 
soul, they distinctly heard a voice, which 
said: '* Pray not for him, but ask him to pray 
to God for you." 

What was left of the wine was preserved 
in the Convent at Bevagnafor over 200 years, 
when it was spilled by some heretical soldiers, 
who pillaged the convent. Many miracles 
had been worked by it. Although small 
quantities had often been extracted, it never 
decreased. 

Blessed James died on the octave of the 
Assumption, August 22, 1301, in the 82d 
year of his age. His body has been preserved 
incorrupt, and four times has been translated, 
in the year after his death, again in 1405, a 
third time in 1555, and lastly in 1589. 

The many miracles which have been 
wrought by his intercession are a proof of 
his sanctity. They include the raising of two 
persons from the dead. His cultus was sol- 
emnly confirmed by Pope Boniface the Ninth 



Blessed James of Bevagna. 323 

in the year 1400. Indulgences were granted 
to those who visit his tomb on the three first 
days of May. In the sixteenth century 
Cardinal Bellarmine wrote a full account of 
his heroic virtues, and collected some of the 
most wonderful miracles with a view to his 
canonization. In 1610 Paul the Fifth pub- 
lished a Bull to add more solemnit}^ to his 
cultus, in which he gave him the title of 
Saint, which Boniface the Ninth had already 
done two centuries before. In 1674, Clement 
the Tenth ordered that his feast should be 
kept on the 23d of August at Bevagna, and 
in the whole Dominican Order. He also 
granted several indulgences to a confraternity 
at Bevagna, under the invocation of Saint 
Dominic and Saint James of Bevagna. How- 
ever, he has not yet been solemnly canonized. 
Blessed James is numbered among the 
long list of Dominican authors. He wrote 
two works, *' The Mirror of Sinners/' and a 
treatise, ** On the Humanity of Jesus Christ,'* 
both of which still remain in manuscript. 

Prayer. 
Ant. I will liken him to a wise man who built 
his house upon a rock. 



324 Blessed James of Bevagna, 

V. Pray for us, O Blessed James, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

O God, who by the miraculous sprinkling 
of Thy Blood wast pleased to strengthen 
Blessed James, Thy Confessor, with a sure 
confidence of his eternal salvation, enlarge 
the same bowels of mercy towards us, that 
being marked with the sign of our r:edemption, 
we may be counted amongst the sheep at Thy 
right hand forever and ever. Amen. 



^sa^^^^:^ 



BLESSED AMBROSE OF SIENJNA. 



Blessed Ambrose of Siemia. 327 



BLESSED AMBROSE OF SIENNA. 
March 22d, 

ONE evening in the year 1220, the inhabit- 
ants of the little town of Bevagna, near 
Spoleto, in Italy, were astonished to see three 
half moons in the heavens, each one containing 
the figure ol a Dominican Friar. This won- 
derful vision was also seen the next day at 
noon-time, and drew a crowd into the street. 
While they were looking at the strange sight 
a little boy cried out, '' To the schools, to the 
schools ! '' and when he was asked the mean- 
ing of his words, he answered that the three 
Dominican Friars who appeared in the sky 
were destined by God to enlighten the 
Church by their teaching and doctrine. 
This legend, which is found in all the old 
lives of Blessed James of Bevagna, was inter- 
preted of him, ot Saint Thomas Aquinas, 
and of Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, who were 
all born about the same time. Blessed Am- 



328 Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 

brose and Blessed James were born in the 
same year in which the apparition happened, 
but St. Thomas not until five years later. 

Blessed Ambrose was born at Sienna, April 
16, 1220. His father's name was Bonatacha, 
or*' Good Fame," and he was so called on 
account of his honorable conduct. He was 
of the noble Siennese family of the Sanse- 
doni. His mother, Justina, came from the 
StribelUno family, of the same city. He was 
deformed, and so ill-shaped, his arms growing 
into his body and his legs and feet so twisted 
together, that no one could look upon him 
without pity. On this account he was con- 
fided to the care of a nurse, called Flora, who 
lived near the Roman Gate of the town. 
One day as she stood near the door of her 
house, holding him in her arms, a pilgrim 
passed by. She covered the child's face to pre- 
vent its being seen, but the pilgrim, observing 
her do so, said to her : '' Do not hide the 
child's face, for one day it will be the light and 
ornament of this town." 

When Ambrose was about a year old Flora 
used to take him with covered face to the 
Dominican Church of St. Mary Magdalene, 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 329 

where, after hearing Mass, she usually went 
to pray for his recovery before the relics of 
that holy Saint. Flora noticed that the child 
never cried when she prayed before these rel- 
ics, but always when she left them. One 
day, as she was going out of the church, little 
Ambrose began to cry so lustily and gave 
such unmistakable signs that he wished to be 
taken back to the reHcs, behaving in so unus- 
ual a manner, that the people in the church ad- 
vised her to follow the child's wishes. When 
they reached the reliquary, to the astonish- 
ment of all, Ambrose stretched forth his arms, 
which till then he had not been able to move, 
and cried out in a loud voice three times the 
holy name of Jesus, and immediately his 
limbs lost their deformity, became well- 
shaped, and his face quite beautiful. This 
miracle took place in presence of several 
people and Dominican Fathers. Many persons 
went to see the child after this miracle, and 
it was always noticed that when members of 
any religious Order came near him he smiled 
at them, and reverently bowed his little head 
three or four times, but when others went 
to see him he looked at them very demurely, 
as if he did not care much about them. 



330 Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, 

This was but the beginning of many remark- 
able infantine signs of sanctity. Thus, while 
his companions passed their time in building 
castles and making little horses and knights, 
Ambrose set up altars with crosses, and loved 
to kneel before them with folded hands, as if 
absorbed in prayer. He adorned oratories, 
sang hymns in honor of God, gathered his 
playmates together, ranged them in order, 
and made devout processions with them • 
in a word, imitated all he saw done in the 
churches. He was so fond of books that his 
pious mother dared not say the hours of the 
Office of the Blessed Virgin out of a book 
in his sight. He was never content until he 
obtained every book he saw, and if refused 
would lay awake the whole night, so that to 
pacify him they were obliged to take a book 
and put it in his hands, when he immediately 
ceased to cry and went to sleep. His father, 
who was a skilful illuminator, made him two 
little books, containing the letters of the alpha- 
bet. One was illustrated with miniatures of 
famous men of the time, the other with pic- 
tures of saints. The child at once refused 
the first, but eagerly took the second, and, 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, 331 

quite contrary to what could have been ex- 
pected, liked the letters better than the pic- 
tures. Little things, no doubt, but which show 
us the tone and bent of his youthful mind. 
He was never tired of talking about God, and 
especially loved to hear the history of the 
early Christian martyrs. He also took de- 
light in learning prayers and texts of holy 
scripture. At the age of seven, he said the 
Little Office of our Blessed Lady daily, and 
soon after made himself a rule of life, very 
perfect for one so young. He fasted on the 
eves of great feasts, and rose every mid- 
night to say the prayers he had learned by 
heart. 

He took great pleasure in entertaining poor 
pilgrims passing through the town, and asked 
his father's permission to furnish a room, in 
which he lodged five of them every Saturday. 
He went to the town gate to await their 
arrival, led them to the house and washed and 
kissed their feet, with great humilit}^ and ten- 
derness. On the morrow he took them to 
hear Mass in one of the churches, after which 
they all went together to pay a visit to the 
shrines of the town ; and when ready to set 



1,^2 Blessed A mbrose of Sienna. 

out again on their journey, he made them a 
present to help them upon their way. Many 
years afterwards, in speaking to the Domin- 
ican Fathers in praise of ahns deeds, he told 
them that one night, after having entertained 
some of these pious pilgrims, five beautiful 
angels appeared to him in his sleep, singing 
sweet hymns in honor of charity, and invited 
him to join them in their melody. He sang 
with them for some time, and then heard a 
voice which said : ** Behold ! the pilgrims 
whom thou hast received with such charity 
now re-visit thee,'' and then all vanished. 

Every Friday he went to the prisons to 
console with holy conversation those who 
were detained there, and on Sundays, after 
Vespers, he usually walked to the hospitals to 
visit the sick. His father and mother desired 
him to join in the ordinary amusements of 
the rich youths of the time, such as hunting 
and hawking, but he steadily refused, and 
told them he wished to live for God alone. 
When he was old enough they tried to per- 
suade him to marry, but could not. He loved 
chastity and decided to preserve it perfect 
and unsoiled throughout life. The devil, 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. ^^ZZ 

who saw the fair white lily of chastity, fed 
by the nourishing dew of humility, growing 
apace in his young heart, tried to destroy 
the beautiful flower by stirring up the scorch- 
ing fires of earthly desires within his breast. 
Ambrose often went to the Cistercian Abbey 
of St. Michael, on the road from Sienna to 
Florence. He frequently spent a few days 
in the society of the good Fathers, who knew 
his virtue and loved him much. He had 
made a rule for himself always to decline in- 
vitations to marriage feasts, fearing the slight- 
est thoughts against chastity. One day, not 
being able to refuse an invitation of this kind, 
he set out for the abbey to get out of the 
way. As he was walking along the high 
road the old and crafty enemy of souls, un- 
der the form of a religious, accosted him, 
asked an alms, and when he had received it, 
under pretext of religious conversation, tried 
to incite in the bosom of the chaste youth the 
desire to marry, praising the joys and com- 
forts of the married state in glowing terms. 
At first, Ambrose did not perceive his inten- 
tion, but when the pretended monk revealed 
his true design, Ambrose made the holy sign 



334 Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, 

of the cross and the devil vanished. When 
arrived at the abbey the monks saw that 
something unusual had happened, and ques- 
tioned him as to the cause of his agitation. 
When they heard from his trembling lips the 
temptation to which he had been subjected, 
they comforted the poor youth, and bade him 
take courage and trust to the merciful help 
of God, never denied to those who seek it. 
He remained several days with the Fathers 
in great fear, lest his victory should be to him 
a temptation to spiritual pride. 

At Montelicito, about three miles from 
Sienna, there was a house of the hermits of 
St. Austin, dedicated to the Holy Saviour. 
Between this monastery and the town was a 
large forest, in which Ambrose loved to walk. 
The solitude was favorable to pious thoughts, 
and he found that he could meditate and read 
spiritual books there with great fruit to his 
soul. 

One day, walking along in the cool shade 
of the trees, thinking of the salvation of his 
soul, he heard a piteous cry near him. He 
looked around, saw no one ; but when the 
cries continued he hurried towards the place 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, 335 

from whence they seemed to come, and after 
a while, deep in the wood, he found a beauti- 
ful young girl, dressed in men*s clothes. On 
seeing him she ran towards him, and claimed 
protection. Ambrose drew back instinctively ; 
he always shunned the slightest contact 
with women. ^' I pray you help me,'' the 
temptress said ; *' I am a young lady of rank 
of Sienna. My father and mother are both 
dead. My brothers, w^ishing to secure my for- 
tune for themselves, tried to persuade me to 
enteraconvent,and when I refused, attempted 
to force me into a life for which I feel no in- 
clination. I was, therefore, obliged, as you 
see, to disguise myself and fly. Unhappily I 
have lost my way in these woods. I beseech 
you take me back to Sienna, and interest your- 
self in my behalf." ^' 1 will not abandon you," 
answered the holy youth, who could refuse no 
one who asked a boon from him ; *'but were 
I to take charge of you myself we should lose 
our good name ; so I will return to Sienna and 
send some one to you, and will see that your 
brothers molest you no longer." 

As he turned to go, the pretended orphan 
threw herself passionately in his way, and 



336 Blessed Ambrose of Sie7ina. 

with tears in her eyes besought him not to 
leave her, declaring she would have no other 
guide than him, and became so demonstrative 
in her protestations of affection, that his eyes 
were opened and he saw that it was another 
wile of the evil one to cause him to fall into 
sin. Again he made the sign of the cross, 
and quickly fled the spot. 

At seventeen he communicated his intention 
of entering the Dominican Order to his fa- 
ther and mother, who, after all the signs of 
sanctity they had perceived in him, could not 
refuse their consent. They not only put no 
hindrance in the way, but at his request gave 
him money to dispense in charity. He dis- 
tributed it to the poor of the town, and to 
several young girls for a dowry, to enable 
them to contract virtuous marriages. It is 
said when he explained to the Prior and 
several of the Fathers of the Dominican 
convent his desire to enter their holy Order, 
they gave thanks to God, who had sent them 
such a treasure, and cried out in so loud a 
voice, in the words of holy w^rit, '' Blessed be 
he that cometh in the name of the Lord/' 
that the other Fathers and Brothers who 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 2)Z1 

were studying in their cells, hearing the 
voices, ran quickly to the spot to see what 
had caused so much joy. He made a spirit- 
ual retreat of ten days to learn the holy will 
of God in solitude and prayer. After which 
he was clothed in the Dominican habit on his 
seventeenth birthday, April 17, 1237. In the 
following year he made his profession. After 
he had taken his vows he spent several years 
in study and in the fervent practice of all 
monastic virtues, after which his Superiors 
sent him to Paris, to finish his studies under 
Blessed Albert the Great, w^ho was in that 
city, with his famous disciple St. Thomas 
Aquinas. AmlDrose set off on his journey 
with two companions, Bros. Oderic Franci- 
gero and Denis of Viterbo. On his way he 
was seized with fever and obliged to take to 
his bed in one of the villages through which 
they had to pass. One day during his illness, 
a venerable looking pilgrim begged an alms 
from the Brother in attendance, and having 
been told of Ambrose's sickness, said he had 
a sure remedy for his complaint. The sim- 
ple young religious took him to the bedside 
of the patient, saying that he had brought a 



;^^S Blessed Amb7^ose of Sienna. 

pilgrim who had comfe to cure him. Am- 
brose jo3'fully raised himself in the bed to 
welcome the supposed religious, but felt an 
inward repugnance as soon as he saw his vis- 
itor, and was much afraid. The pilgrim 
began to talk, and tried to persuade Ambrose 
not to continue his journey, saying that his 
studies in Paris would undoubtedly end in 
failure, and when he saw his persuasions were 
of no efTect, stretched out his hands on the 
bed, pretending to cure him. But Ambrose, 
fearing some illusion, and not liking his ap- 
pearance, made the sign of the cross, which 
twice before had delivered him from great 
temptations, and immediately the pilgrim, or 
rather the evil one, who had taken a human 
form, vanished. The two Brothers who stood 
nigh fell to the ground from fear, while the 
men of the house, hearing the noise, ran to 
the place, but dared not enter on account 
of the evil perfume which the enemy of 
souls had left behind him. Two days after 
Ambrose recovered, and set out again on his 
journey. 

The year of his arrival in Paris seems un- 
certain, yet as Blessed Albert, with his pupil, 



Blessed A 7nbrose of Sienna, 339 

St. Thomas Aquinas, did not arrive there un- 
til October of the year 1245, it would seem 
likely that it was somewhere near that time. 

Being under so learned a master as Albert 
the Great, Ambrose made great progress. 
In due time the degree of Bachelor in Theol- 
ogy was offered him in recognition of his 
talents, but from humility he declined it, and 
asked to be allowed to devote himself entirely 
to the work of preaching. After some time 
spent in apostolic labors, he begged to retire 
into a secluded monaster}^, there to refresh 
his spirit and enrich his mind with more 
ample treasures of Holy Writ. He was also 
employed about this time in teaching Holy 
Scriptures to the novices of the convent. 
When he was at Paris he wrote several theo- 
logical treatises, but never pubhshed them ; 
he thought it would savor of presumption to 
do so, seeing that St. Thomas was teaching 
in that convent. He said that the writings 
of St. Thomas were the works of a more 
than human hand, and always showed the 
warmest admiration for them. 

In the year 1248 he was sent to Cologne, 
in Germany, with St. Thomas, to teach the- 



34^ Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 

ology in the Dominican schools. While 
there he learned German, and preached in 
that language. Whole families of heretics 
were converted by his sermons, and miracles 
were not wanting to attest the sanctity of the 
preacher and the truth of his doctrine. Sev- 
eral times the Holy Ghost, under the form of 
a pure white dove, was seen hovering around 
him, as if whispering in his ear what he was 
to preach. 

The state of Germany at that period was 
very lamentable; rent and torn by internal 
factions, it offered an easy prey to heresy. 
After the deposition of Emperor Freder- 
ick by the first Council of Lyons, and more 
especially from the time of his death to the 
year 1273, when Rudolph of Hapsburg as- 
cended the throne, Germany had beenagitated 
by divisions and revolts. Vice flourished un- 
checked — the whole state seemed corrupt ; 
and what was saddest of all, the good example 
of the clergy, which alone could have stayed 
the general depravity of morals, was, alas ! 
wanting. In the midst of this miserable state 
of affairs a new sect arose. In the year 1248 
some heretical preachers began openly to 



Blessed A vibrose of Sienna, 34 1 

* preach in the town of Halle, in Suabia, many 
errors and false doctrines, such as, that the 
Pope in reality was a heretic, all Bishops, 
simonaics, every ecclesiastic a seducer of the 
people, and that priests were deprived of all 
authority to bind and to loose on account of 
their sins. They said that they alone were 
the friends of virtue, the only possessors 
of the true faith, and claimed the sole right to 
give valid absolution. 

Blessed Ambrose preached against this 
heresy with great success. The heads of the 
sect challenged him to a public disputation ; 
he did not refuse, and argued with them so 
sweetly and charitably, seeking rather the 
salvation of their souls than their discomfi- 
ture, and his arguments were so strong, his 
patience, mildness, and holiness so winning, 
that many gave up their errors, and were re- 
stored to the bosom of the Catholic Church. 
Others, however, deaf to all holy inspirations 
and to the light of reason, remained in their 
heresy, and it is said attempted his life several 
times. He feared them not, and continued to 
preach, until at last the people became so con- 
vinced of the truth of the Catholic faith, that 



342 Blessed A mbrose of Sienna. 

they returned in great numbers into the fold 
of Christ, and in several villages chased away 
the heretical preachers^ 

The next field of his labors was the king- 
dom of Hungary. This country, in the year 
1260, was threatened with a Tartar irruption. 
Pope Urban 4th, fearing the advance of these 
enemies of Christianity, wrote to the Princes 
and Bishops, begging them to take the surest 
and best means within their reach for resist- 
ing the invasion. Ambrose, at the head of 
several other fervent and holy priests, trav- 
ersed the country, preaching repentance to 
the people, reconciling enemies, and animat- 
ing all to make common cause against the 
enemy. The Tartars were repulsed with the 
enormous loss of 52,000, and Hungary was 
saved. 

He was also employed in several other 
affairs of importance to Church and state. 
One of these must have been peculiarly 
pleasing to him : it was to reconcile Sienna, 
his native town, to the Pope. The Siennese 
had taken up the cause of the excommunicated 
and deposed Emperor Frederick, the enemy 
of the Church, who had been excommunicated 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 343 

by Pope Clement 4th, in the year 1266. This 
punishment, deserved by disobedience and 
obstinacy, not only fell upon the guilty, but 
also upon the many good and pious Catholics of 
the city. They prayed, fasted, and gave alms 
to appease the anger of God, and employed 
various princes to be their mediators with 
the injured Pope, but all having proved fruit- 
less, they bethought themselves of Ambrose, 
and sent two of the Dominican Fathers of 
Sienna to beg him to intercede with the 
Pope for them. He accepted this office of 
peace-maker, and set off for Sienna. Having 
arrived in the town, a deputation of citizens 
waited upon him, and gave him full power to 
treat with the Pope in their name. But Am- 
brose, before setting out, preached to the peo- 
ple, and succeeded in reconciling all who 
were at enmity, and restored the whole city 
to one state of mind. He was completely 
successful in his mission and obtained from 
the Holy Father a full pardon and removal 
of the interdict and excommunication, also a 
renewal of all the privileges they had lost by 
their revolt against the authority of the Holy 
See. 



344 Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 

Forgetting the Pope's mercy, they cast off 
their allegiance a second time, and the inter- 
dict having been renewed, they applied to 
Father Ambrose, who accepted the office of 
intercessor, although their ingratitude made it 
a much more difficult task. Pope Gregory 
loth was holding his court at Viterbo. Am- 
brose went and sought an audience. He 
did not attempt to excuse his fellow citizens, 
but pleaded the cause of mercy so eloquently 
that the Pope at once pardoned them. Some 
authors assert that when he entered the 
Pope's presence, his face appeared as if on 
fire with a supernatural light, which the 
Pope seeing, felt himself so strongly drawn to 
pardon the Siennese, that before Ambrose 
could explain his mission, he cried out : ^* Fa- 
ther Ambrose, it is not necessary for you to 
explain your errand. I grant all you wish 
to ask from me." In gratitude for this great 
benefit, the inhabitants of Sienna instituted a 
feast to commemorate the event, and cele- 
brated with great pomp a religious proces- 
sion and solemn High Mass. 

He also brought about a happy reconcilia- 
tion between Conrad, grandson of the Em- 



Blessed Ambrose of Sienna. 345 

peror Frederick the Second of Germany, and 
Pope Clement 4th. 

This young prince entered Italy with a 
large army, subdued Lombardy, Tuscany, 
and a part of the states of the Church. He 
even entered Rome, and the Pope was forced 
to retire to Viterbo. Elated by success, Con- 
rad slighted the ecclesiastical censures which 
were laid upon him, but his army having 
been cut into pieces by Charles First, King 
of Sicily, in a battle, August 23, 1268, he was 
taken prisoner, led to Naples, and condemned 
to death. During his imprisonment the un- 
happy young man entered into himself, 
repented of his disobedience to the Holy See, 
and obtained Father Ambrose to be his 
intercessor with the Pope. Always ready to 
work for the good of the Church, and for the 
salvation of souls, Ambrose sought the Pope^s 
presence, and spoke so forcibly that the Pope, 
turning to the bystanders, said : " I say to you. 
Father Ambrose, that I desire mercy and not 
sacrifice," and added that it was not the voice 
of Ambrose which they had bee.i listening to 
but the Holy Ghost speaking through him. 
He then removed all the censures from the 



346 Blessed A 77tbrose of Sienna. 

young prince, and restored him* to favor. 
Unfortunately for Conrad, King Charles was 
not equally merciful, for he caused the sen- 
tence of death to be carried out soon after 
the Pope's pardon. These marks of confi- 
dence caused Ambrose to be regarded as a 
man of public utility, and when the Episcopal 
See of Sienna became vacant he was elected 
Bishop of that town, in which, as we have 
already said, he had been born, and to which 
he had given so many marks of affection. 
But although Pope Clement 4th wished him 
to accept the dignity, Ambrose declined. 
About this time he was also employed in 
preaching the Crusade, which he did with 
such success that in a very short time a nu- 
merous army was on foot for the recovery of 
the holy sepulchre. Pope Gregory loth re- 
quested him to re-establish the college of 
studies in the Dominican convent in Rome. 
The late wars and the absence of the Papal 
Court from Rome had caused a sad falling off 
in the studies, but more peaceful times having 
succeeded to the previous disorders, the Pope 
wished him to live in Rome, and to revive 
the former flourishing courses of philosophy, 



Blessed Amb7^ose of Sienna. 347 

theology and other branches of sacred 
science. He did so, and lectured on theolo- 
gy with great success ; but at the same time 
did not neglect to preach, not only to the 
people, but also to the Cardinals then in Rome. 
He reprehended them with fearless freedom, 
especially for having allowed the Apostolic 
See to remain vacant for nearly 3 years, which 
had been a great injury to the Church, and a 
scandal to the weak ones of Christ. 

After the death of Gregory loth, he re- 
tired into solitude, so long broken by his 
public duties. The virtues of monastic life 
shone forth in him with marvellous beauty 
throughout his life, even when his duties 
called him from the loved quiet of the cloister 
into the busy world, but more especially 
when he was leading the life of prayer and 
meditation he loved so much in the retire- 
ment of the monastery. 

This will be a fitting place to give an ac- 
count of his virtues. All his biographers say 
that if his life be carefully studied it will be 
found to be a series of examples of perfect 
humility. The virtue of the Saint of Saints 
was the motive of his whole life, and the 



348 Blessed A)) lb rose of Sienna, 

foundation of all his virtues, especially of his 
spotless chastity. 

On account of his extensive and profound 
learning he was much esteemed, but the more 
he was honored the more he fled from praise. 
He often swept the cloisters and dormitories 
of the convent. It sometimes happened in a 
theological discussion that his opponent be- 
came angry, but Ambrose always calmed 
him with sweet words, and although he him- 
self had committed no fault against charity 
and brotherly love, begged his pardon, as if 
he had been in the wrong ; and lest charity 
should be lost, though for a very brief time, 
he was always very unwilling to take part in 
such discussion. He never went to the altar 
to say Mass, or for any sacred function, until 
he had examined his conscience, to see if he 
was in perfect charity with every one, and if 
he thought he had done or said anything 
which could in any way have hurt the feelings 
of those among whom he lived, he always 
begged pardon, although it was seldom that 
any one could find the slightest cause of of- 
fence against him. 

He loved holy poverty dearly, and prac- 



Blessed A mbrose of Sienna. 349 

tised it perfectly. He always made his jour- 
neys oil foot, even as delegate of the Pope. 
In the convents in which he lived, or to which 
he paid a visit, if he saw one of the commun- 
ity remarkable for purity and simplicity, he 
would frequently talk with him, rejoicing 
much in the humility he saw in him, taking 
greater pleasure in his society, though he 
might be a lowly lay Brother, than in the 
polished ease of more learned men. 

The afflicted and troubled in mind continu- 
ally went to him for consolation, to whom the 
holy man was wont to say : ** In me there is no 
remedy, but as the Holy Scripture observes, 
^Our God is our refuge and strength, a help- 
er in troubles, which have found us exceed- 
ingly, therefore we will not fear/ — Ps. xliv. 
I, 2. Do not weep on account of your 
troubles, but put your whole trust in God's 
love, and in the hopes which he gives to all 
Christians in his consolations, whenever with 
perfect love they come to him. It is written, 
*The Lord is my helper. I will not fear 
what man can do unto me.' '* — Psalm cxvii. 6. 
He would then listen patiently and with sym- 
pathy to all their troubles, advise them, and 



3 50 Blessed A mbrose of Sienna, 

send them away light of heart, trusting in 
God. 

He observed all the austerities of the Do- 
minican Order, eating meat but once dur- 
ing the whole time he was a religious, and 
then only under necessity ; fasting on bread 
and water every Friday. He slept but four 
hours, and always in his habit. After mat- 
ins he remained two hours in prayer in the 
choir, and then he studied till daylight. He 
said the little hours on his knees, and took the 
discipline at the end of the Divine Office. 
Day and night he wore a hair shirt, and a 
large plate of lead upon his loins. He seldom 
drank wine, and then only in small quantities. 
He is said to have had the gift of prophecy 
and Father Vincent of Aretino, a Dominican 
Friar who accompanied Ambrose on his apos- 
tolic journeys, says that he saw him several 
times raised from the ground in ecstacy. 

He was a very remarkable and apostolic 
preacher. Timid and hesitating in ordinary 
conversation, when in the pulpit he was as 
bold as a lion. He denounced vice fearlessly 
and with holy freedom combated heresy, 
usury, and the other sins prevalent at that 



Blessed A mbrose of Sienna, 351 

period. His sermons were collected, but 
have been lost. He preached much, but 
wrote little, and one of his biographers says 
that he had but limited talent for literary com- 
position ; that when he wrote he showed 
great disregard for style, and that there were 
no signs in his works of the elegance of lan- 
guage so lavishly displayed in his sermons. 

Of his learning we have already spoken, 
but we may give here the testimony of one of 
his biographers, who asserts that Ambrose ap- 
peared like a psalmist, when he treated of 
the psalms, like a prophet when he took the 
prophecies in his hands, like an evangelist 
among the holy evangelists, an apostle with 
the apostles, and a true philosopher among 
philosophers. To overcome the errors of 
the day, he made use of sound philosophy. 
In his sermons, he illustrated doctrine by 
familiar examples taken from occurrences of 
every day life, after the example of his 
Divine Master. 

We have also spoken of his purity. He 
loved to praise that angelic virtue in his 
sermons ; he frequently prayed for virgins, 
also. for those about to marry, and so great 



352 Blessed A m brose of Sienna. 

was the estimation in which he was held 
that many who were thinking of choosing a 
wife, consulted him about it, and after his 
death it became a pious custom for virgins to 
offer candles at his tomb, to obtain a good 
husband. He instituted various confrater- 
nities of men and women, to whom he gave 
the rules of his own Order. He desired to 
lead them to a more perfect observance of 
the life of prayer and penance. These con- 
fraternities, having been of much benefit in 
Sienna, were afterward introduced into other 
cities. 

After several years spent in the happy 
solitude of a little-frequented monastery of 
his Order, Innocent Fifth sent him into 
Tuscany as Papal Legate, and employed him 
in restoring peace between Venice and 
Genoa, and between Florence and Pisa. In 
the latter city, when he had made all the 
necessary arrangements and everything ap- 
peared ready for the conclusion of peace with 
the citizens of Florence, the devil incited 
many to oppose him. Among them was one 
man, noted for the fierceness of his character, 
who went to the Saint, and poured out a 



Blessed A mbrose of Siemta. 353 

torrent of abuse, calling him a *Meceiver of 
the people, full of pride and ambition, worthy 
only of death," which punishment, he added, 
''I shall most certainly inflict upon you 
unless you cease your practices/' Ambrose 
heard him calmly, and replied that he was 
but the servant of the God of peace, and 
that his only wish was to put an end to the 
quarrels between Pisa and Florence. '* If I 
have sinned,'' he said humbly, *' I do not 
refuse to receive from you the punishment I 
deserve; I pardon you with all my heart what 
you have said ; 1 would even pardon you my 
death, and I pray God not to judge you in 
his anger." 

This man, as the old chronicler relates, was 
naturally cruel and fierce, having no fear of 
God in his heart, being filled with anger and 
revenge, no lover of peace but of discord. 
Although he was much enraged against the 
servant of God, yet when he heard the saintly 
words that fell from his lips he threw him- 
self upon his knees and cried out : *' Forget 
what I have said, O servant of God, and pray 
for me, that God may grant me true peace." 
This sudden conversion was sincere and last- 



354 Blessed Ambrose of Sienna, 

ing; he became a God-fearing man and a de- 
vout Christian. 

In the beginning of the Lent of 1286, preach- 
ing in Sienna he so exerted himself in a ser- 
mon against usury, that he burst a vein in 
his chest, which discharged such a quantity of 
blood from his mouth that he was obliged to 
discontinue his sermon, and take to bed. 
The next day, the blood having ceased to 
flow, he wished to go to the church and con- 
tinue his sermon, but it opened again, and he 
vomited so much blood that every one saw 
his end was near at hand. 

To prepare himself for his passage to eter- 
nity, he made a general confession, in which 
his confessor did not remark a single sin 
which had deprived him of the grace of God, 
especially with regard to chastity, which he 
had alwa3^s preserved most perfect. 

After his confession he asked for the 
Blessed Sacrament, and when it was brought 
to him made a great effort to arise to re- 
ceive it. Then he received the Sacrament of 
Extreme Unction, and said all the responses 
in a loud, clear voice. He bade the Fathers 
and Brothers not weep for him, and sitting up 
in bed he kissed them all, saying something 



Blessed A mbrose of Sie7tna. 355 

to each one. When his last moments arrived 
he was much pleased to behold the religious 
kneeling around his bed helping him with 
their fervent prayers. Being thus fortified by 
the Sacraments of the Church, and upheld by 
the prayers of his brethren, he raised his eyes 
to heaven and peaceably gave up his soul to 
God. It was in March 19th, 1286. He 
had completed his 67th year. He was buried 
in the Sacristy of the Dominican Church at 
Sienna. Many wonderful miracles were 
worked at his tomb. They became so numer- 
ous that the Bishop of Sienna asked Father 
Gregory of Icontris and Father Nicholas of 
Ricasole, both living in the convent of Sienna, 
to make a list of the most authentic. The 
abridgement of his life, written in Italian, 
gives no less than 180, among which is the 
resurrection of six persons to life. 

Shortly after his death Pope Hcnorius the 
Fourth ordered four Dominicans, Fr. Gilbert, 
a disciple of St. Thomas, Fr. Recuperatus, of 
Petramala, Fr. Aldobrando de Paparoni, and 
Fr. Odoardo Bis-Domini of Sienna, to write 
hislife, in order to proceed to his canonization. 
Political troubles, and other adverse circum- 



356 Blessed A mbrose of Sienna, 

stances hindered the process of his canoniza- 
tion, and for many years it was laid aside. 
In the year 1442, Pope Eugenius Fourth 
being at Sienna, the clergy and people peti- 
tioned him to take up the cause again ; he 
promised to do so and allowed the citizens to 
celebrate a feast in honor of Blessed Ambrose, 
with the rite of a canonized Saint, in the 
Dominican Church. This feast was kept on 
the Friday before Passion Sunday. 

Many Popes have granted plenary indul- 
gences to those who visit his tomb on this 
day. Pope Gregor}' XV. allowed the whole 
Dominican Order to keep his feast on the 
22d of March, and the Sacred Congregation 
of Rites inserted his name in the Roman 
Marty rology in the year 1577. 

Prayer, 

Ant, Behold an Israelite, indeed, in whom is 
no guile. 
V. Pray for us, O Blessed Ambrose, 
R. That we may be made worthy of the 
promises of Christ. 

LET us PRAY. 

May the votive solemnity of Blessed 



Blessed A mbrose of Sienna. 357 

Ambrose, Thy Confessor, rejoice Thy Church, 
O God, that it may ever be defended with 
all spiritual helps, and made worthy to be 
blessed with everlasting joys. Through 
Christ our Lord, Amen. 




BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 



The Life of the Angelic Doctor^ St. 
Thomas Aquinas. Small Octavo, 
$i.oo. i86 pp. D. & J. Sadlier & Co., 
New York. 

Lives of soine of the Sons of St. Dominic ; 
containing the lives of Blessed Jordan of 
Saxony, Antony Neyrot, James of Ulni, 
Giles of Santarem, Bertrand of Garrigue, 
Venerable Bartholomew of the Martyrs, 
and Lewis of Granada. Small octavo, 
$i.oo. 281 pp. D. & J. Sadlier & Co., 
New York. 
These works, and the present volume, form 

part of an intended collection of ^^ Lives of 

all the Saints and Blessed of the First 

Order of St. Dominic.^^ 



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